Beyond This Love: The Wammy House Memories
by TheHeartlessNukia
Summary: Elizabeth Mirabella Mayhem moved to Winchester at the age of 8 not long after her Mother passed away to live with her only living relative, her Great Aunt Thora. She didn't know what to expect from her new life or home, she befriends a boy called A from the local orphanage. But when she turns 13 her life changes forever. ( side story to Beyond This Love )
1. My New Start

**Hey, Nukia here!**

**My summery is terrible, so bear with me!**

**So I've decided to start rewriting The Wammy House Memories now, I thought it would be better if it was a separate fanfiction instead of it being written into Beyond This Love. It starts when SJ is 8 and it will end when she leaves The Wammy House at the age of 15. All the old characters will still be in it, I will be using Phantom1313's ocs in it this time because she as given me full permission to use them all. **

**So if you're new to my fanfictions, I would start by reading Beyond This Love first or you could check out my old profile on here. There is a link for it on my profile page, I use to go under the username Nukia or Nukian. My fanfictions use to be xreaders, but I wanted to turn the xreader into an oc. **

**So I hope my old/new readers enjoy the first chapter of The Wammy House Memories, I've got loads of new ideas and hopefully it will be an improvement from what I had before. If you don't like it, then don't read it. I'm still having my creativity lows, so I don't need any discouragement from my old readers. **

**Chapter 1**

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><p>Yesterday was a fun day, I got to go on the train with my Mummy's best friends Bella whom I'd been staying with for the past few weeks since my Mummy went to heaven. It was a really fun train journey, I got to crawl under the passager seats and I even found pen in the toilet on the train. We had packed lunches for our dinner, I didn't like the tomatoes on my sandwiches though and I stuffed them down the side of one of seats when Bella wasn't looking.<p>

Bella had explained to me that I was going to live in a town called Winchester from now on with my Great Aunt Thora and her Housekeeper. I was sad about leaving my old home in Oxford, but my Mummy always use to tell that the best kind of adventures are the ones farthest away from home. But I really do miss my Mummy, I miss her hugs, her kisses and all the exciting bedtime stories she use to tell me about fluffy bunny rabbits with golden magical whiskers.

A lady called Rose Morrissey had met us at Winchester train station, she is my Great Aunt's Housekeeper. She seems like a nice lady, she likes wearing her dark red hair up in bun which is held in place with two hair-clips and she also wears round glasses. I had to say goodbye to my Mummy's friend Bella though, I wasn't allowed to live with her because she isn't a blood relative. I'm not really sure what one of those is yet, but I know my Great Aunt Thora is one.

Bella had brought me a shark snapper toy before she caught another train back to Oxford, it's really cool and I can pick small toys up from the floor with it. She told me to be brave girl for my Mummy and that she would write to me every month, I'm really excited about that though because I've never received a letter before.

Me and Rose got a taxi from the train station after Bella got on her train, it was a really long drive to my Great Aunt's Thora's cottage. Rose had told me that my Great Aunt's cottage was far out in the countryside, apparently she didn't like getting many visitors. I'm kind of nervous about meeting her now, what if she doesn't like me?

We arrived at my Great Aunt's cottage at 5:55pm, I remembered the time because I looked at my Minnie Mouse watch when I got out of the taxi. It was getting dark so I didn't really get a good look at my new home, but I could smell freshly mowed grass and I saw a couple of little stone faeries near a tree holding pretty butterfly lanterns.

I didn't really get a chance to meet my Great Aunt Thora though last night, she was busy with one of her business contacts. Rose had told me she was having evening tea with gentleman caller from a local orphanage that she donates money to at the beginning of every year. I'm not really sure what a gentleman caller is though, maybe I could I ask my Great Aunt Thora what one of those is at breakfast today.

Rose had woken me up at 7:30am this morning, she wanted me to get into a routine before I started my home schooling lessons in the next couple of days. I did ask why I couldn't go to a normal school, but she told me it was an hours journey to the nearest school from the cottage and my Great Aunt Thora had already arranged for me to be home schooled over a week ago.

" Elizabeth! Breakfast is being serviced!" I heard Rose call from downstairs. " Hurry up before your toast gets cold!"

" Okay!" I replied.

I got up from my chair in front of my dressing table and looked at my reflection in the mirror, I got told by Rose to dress smart for my first meeting with my Great Aunt Thora. She told me first impressions are important, so I decided to wear my new grey long-sleeved dress and my black patent buckled shoes. I tied my hair up into a ponytail as best as I could, I wasn't really good at doing my hair yet because my Mummy always did it for me.

" Elizabeth!" I heard Rose call again from downstairs. " Come on now my love, your breakfast is on the table!"

" Okay Rose, I'm coming now!" I replied.

I took one last look at my refection in the mirror, I picked my white headband up from my dressing table and carefully put it on. I guess now I should go and meet my Great Aunt Thora, I just hope she likes me.


	2. Morning Breakfast

**Hey, Nukia here!**

**My summary is still bad, I think I'll change it later on when I get a feel for The Wammy House Memories and understand my plot a bit better. **

**I wrote this chapter pretty quickly, it flowed from me and I think my first few chapters will be slow. I want to show the relationship between Elizabeth and her Aunt first. I will tell you more about her family to, then I'll do some time skips and get to the good bits. I know my chapters aren't very long right now, but they will get longer as time goes on. Also with my writing, it will change as Elizabeth get's older. **

**Thank you for the reviews, favorites and the alerts! It's most appreciated! **

**Chapter 2! **

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><p>I quietly closed my bedroom door behind me and looked down the stairs. I slightly smiled to myself as the smell of buttered toast wafted up the staircase, it smelt delicious and my tummy decided to rumble loudly which made me giggle. I carefully made my way down the stairs and jumped from the bottom step. I looked around the hallway and noticed a few photographs on a wooden end table near a coat-stand, they looked really old. I walked over to them and carefully picked one of the photo frames up of a little girl sitting on a chair with a black cat on her lap. I'm not sure who she is, but she looked unhappy and wore a pretty bird brooch on her scarf.<p>

" There you are my love!" I heard Rose say from behind me. " You better put that back before Miss Havisham comes down for breakfast, she won't appreciate you messing with her belongings..."

" Who is Miss Havisham?" I asked as I looked at the photograph and chewed at my bottom lip. " And who are all of these people in the photographs? They look like they are from the old times before photographs had colour..."

" Miss Havisham is your Great Aunt Thora..." She replied. " Now put it back my dear, if your Aunt catches you she may scold you..."

" Okay..." I nodded.

I looked over my shoulder at Rose and saw her standing in the doorway of the kitchen. She was wearing a dark blue jumper and some black trousers today with a yellow apron tied around her waist. I placed the photo frame back on the side and cupped my hands behind my back as I walked into the kitchen.

" Come on now Elizabeth, let's get you seated at the breakfast table and I'll get you something warm to drink..." She smiled and walked over to the kitchen stove. " Did you wash your hands before you came downstairs?"

" Yes... " I lied.

" Good girl, now take a seat and I'll get you some poached eggs..." She said and continued to cook at the stove. " Help yourself to some toast, there is three different kinds of flavoured jams on the table for your toast and also some Marmite. Just help yourself, your Great Aunt Thora should be down in a few minutes..."

" Okay..." I nodded.

I took a seat at the table and looked around the kitchen, I've never been a kitchen like this before. It was old-looking, it was quite light too with pretty white flowy curtains hanging at the kitchen window and a wooden wall cupboard filled with many different kinds of plates above one of the kitchen counters. I took a piece of toast from the toast-holder and placed it down on my plate, now I just had to decided what kind of jam I wanted on my toast.

" Here we go my dear, I hope you like poached eggs..." Said Rose as she placed two poached eggs on my plate. " Would you like any french toast or bacon? I do a delicious mushroom and cheese omelette if you're interested. Breakfast is the most important meal of the day, I want to make such you get a good meal before the day starts..."

" No thank you..." I replied.

" Okay my love..." She smiled.

I watched Rose walk back over to the stove, she really is a nice lady and I bet she will take good care of me well I live here. I decided to have apricot jam with my toast, I carefully spread it on my toast and placed my knife down on my plate. I took a big bite of my toast, it was really good and the toast was so crunchy.

" Good morning Miss Havisham, how are you feeling this morning?" I heard Rose say. " Your porridge is nearly ready, I'll pour you a cup of tea in one moment and bring it over to you..."

I looked over my shoulder as I slowly chewed my toast, I saw a tall slender lady standing in the doorway of the kitchen with a fancy walking stick and woolen shawl draped around her shoulders. She was wearing a white buttoned up blouse and a long black skirt with a thick bet around her waist. She looked really old and grey, I guess she must be my Great Aunt Thora.

" I am well as I can be thank you Rose, I'll take two sugars in my earl grey this morning..." She answered and slowly hobbled over to the kitchen table. " I would also like some chocolate in my porridge, I believe I maybe acquiring a sweet tooth..."

" What's a sweet tooth?" I asked.

I watched my Great Aunt Thora sit down across from me at the kitchen table, she rested her walking stick up against the wall by her chair and took a pair of glasses from her blouse pocket. She put her glasses on and looked at me from across the table with a blank look on her face.

" So you must be my Great Niece Elizabeth, I see you have no manners and interrupted adults when they are having a conversation..." She answered. " I see I have my work cut out with you young lady, but it's a pleasure to met you finally. If I may give you my condolences about your Mother, she was a lovely and kind girl from what I remember. She will be missed, but I will try and do my best in bring you up until you are old enough to lead your own life..."

" Did you know my Mummy when she was a little girl?" I asked and sucked some apricot jam from my finger tip. " She told me that you were her Mummy's big Sister, she would have been my Grandmother..."

" Yes, I knew your Mother Daniella when she was a little girl. She and my Sister Annabella stayed on many occasions at my cottage in the summer many years ago before you were even a thought in your Mother's mind..." She answered and smiled at Rose when she place a cup of tea down on the table in front of her. " But at this moment I think we should eat our breakfast before it gets cold and finish our conversation later over some tea about our family history in my boudoir. I have a meeting at 1pm with a business contact, so would the time of 11am be suitable for you Elizabeth? "

" I so guess..." I answered and picked my folk up from the table. " Can I bring my photo album with me please? I want to show you some photographs of my Mummy and my old house in Oxford..."

" Yes, I would like that very much Elizabeth..." She answered and took a sip of her tea. " Now eat your breakfast, I like to eat in peace first thing in the morning well reading my copy of the Hampshire Chronicle. But seeing as it's only 8:25am I give you full permission to take a look around my cottage, I want you to learn the layout of it and remember it off by heart. This is your home to now and I would like you to get to know it, but I would like you to stay out of my boudoir unless I have invited you to enter it. Do you understand? "

" I understand, thank you Great Aunt Thora..." I smiled.

I quickly ate my poached eggs and the rest of my toast, I didn't have long until I had tea with my Great Aunt Thora. I wanted to explore every nook and cranny of the cottage before 11am, especially the garden. I helped Rose clear up the table after breakfast, she told me to go and get changed into my wellies before I went outside. It had been raining in the night, so she didn't want me to get muddy. I said goodbye to Rose and went to my bedroom to get my wellies, I guess living here won't be to bad after all.


	3. New Friends

**Hey, Nukia here!**

**My summary is still bad, I think I will change it later when I get a feel for The Wammy House Memories and understand where my plot is going. This fanfiction is a side story to Beyond This Love. **

**I wrote this chapter pretty quickly, it flowed from me and I think my first few chapters will be slow. But thank you for the reviews, favorites and the alerts! Also to the unknown people who read my fanfictions, I promise it will pick up at some point! **

**Chapter 3**

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><p>I've lived at My Great Aunt Thora's cottage for nearly a month now and I really like it here sometimes, but not when my Aunt scolds me. I accidentally knocked one of her bird ornaments off her Victorian Cabinet in the living room well I was playing airplanes a few days ago, she sent me to my bedroom for the day and she made me eat green beans with sprouts for my lunch. I didn't mind eating them though, I actually like vegetables. Rose made me some cheese sauce to go with them, she sneaked me some when my Aunt wasn't looking.<p>

My homeschooling is going well too, I like my home school teacher and she let's me call her by her first name when my Great Aunt Thora is not around. Her name is Jane Couldrey, she told me she teaches at a local orphanage called The Wammy House not far from the cottage. But today is weekend, so I get to have two days off from my lessons and have some fun.

The date today is the 18th of December, in a few days time it will be Christmas. I'm help Rose out in the kitchen today, she told me that this evening my Aunt Thora is hosting a dinner party for a few of her business contacts and old friends. So Rose had to cook them a four course dinner and I asked if I could help out in the kitchen.

" Okay my love, now I want you to carefully beat the sugar and egg yolks together until they're fluffy..." She smiled as she placed a mixing bowl and a wooden spoon down in front of me at the kitchen table. " I've got to see to my cream mixture on the stove, I've got to make sure that it doesn't burn or curdle..."

" Rose, what else are you making for the dinner party?" I asked

" Well my love, I'm making French Cuisine for Great Aunt's guest this evening..." She replied. " I've got to make French toast with onions, Cuisses de Grenouille à la Provençale and Beef Bourguignon. I've brought some very nice bottles French wine called Anjou to go with the courses, they came all the way from France..."

" What is Cuisses de Grenouille à la Provençale?" I asked.

" Well done Elizabeth, you said that perfectly!" She smiled and picked a little white salt shaker from the table. " The translation for Cuisses de Grenouille à la Provençale is Sautéed Frogs' Legs, it's a delicacy in France..."

" Frogs?!" I gasped. " Great Aunt Thora is going to eat frogs!"

" Don't worry my love, they're not frogs from the pond in the garden..." She laughed.

" And what is this?" I asked as I peeped into the bowl and chewed at my bottom lip. " Does it have frogs in it to?"

" That's Crème Brûlée, there's no frogs in that dish..." She replied. " Now I want you to beat the sugar and egg yolks together, I need to check on my cream mixture..."

I nodded my head at Rose and began to beat the ingredients together, I love spending time with Rose. She let's me help her out in the kitchen sometimes, we made some homemade strawberry jam in the week and tomorrow we're going to make some apple crumble for our Sunday Dinner dessert with custard.

" Rose, who is going to Great Aunt Thora's dinner party?" I asked. " Am I invited?"

" Oh just some people, you don't need to know their names..." She replied and continued to mix the cream mixture in her saucepan. " I'm afraid you're not invited my dear, but you can host a tea party if you like in your bedroom..."

" But I won't have any guests!" I pouted and watched Rose remove her saucepan from the stove. " I will be all by myself, I can't throw a tea party without guests!"

" That's where you are wrong young Elizabeth, I've got a surprise for you..." She smiled. " You will have at least one guest at your tea party this evening, one of Miss Havisham's guests is bring a young boy with him..."

" Really?!" I asked and dropped my wooden spoon into the mixing bowl. " No foolies?"

" Yes no foolies my love!" She joyfully laughed and walked over to the kitchen table. " I'm not sure what his name is yet, but he's around your age and lives at The Wammy House so I have heard. He will be accompanying Mr Wammy, your Aunt as arranged for you to have a play mate from now on. She thought the company would do you some good, you can't be spending all of your childhood with old biddies like us..."

" Does that mean he's an orphan?" I asked.

" Yes..." She answered.

" Can we adopt him please?" I asked and dipped my finger tip in the bowl's mixture. " I always wanted a Brother, but not Sister because I'd have to share my toys with her and my clothes!"

" Oh Elizabeth!" She laughed as she placed her saucepan down on metal pot stand on the kitchen table and smiled. " You're such a delight to have around the house, you come out with the most amusing things sometimes! Why don't you go and tidy your bedroom before they get here, I'll make you an array of sandwiches for your tea party. I've also prepared a very special dessert for you and your guest too. An old family recipe of mine, my Mother use to make it for me when I was a little girl. I've also got some of those strawberry jam cupcakes left still from Friday, I'll whip some cream up for their toppings..."

" What is the special dessert you have made?" I asked.

" You'll have to wait and see my love, it's a surprise!" She replied. " Now go and get changed into something smart, your guest will be arriving in an hours time. I'll bright him to your bedroom when he arrives, I'll also bring your dinner up to your room too..."

" Okay!" I smiled.

I climbed down from my chair and skipped out of the kitchen as I sucked the mixture from my finger tip, this should be fun. I'm going to have a friend at last, but I hope he likes me and doesn't pull my hair like some boys use to do when I use to go to my old school in Oxford. I quickly ran up the stairs and walked into my bedroom. My room was pretty tidy, I didn't really have many toys and mostly spent my free time drawing in my note-book or reading some of my favorite fairy tales.

" Why do you build me up, buttercup, baby just to let me down and mess me around!" I sang loudly as picked my red ball up from the floor and walked over to my wooden white toy box. " And then worst of all you never call, baby when you say you will but I love you still, I need you more than anyone darling!"

" Elizabeth!" I heard my Great Aunt Thora yell from her bedroom across the hall. " Would you please keep your singing to a certain level of volume! I am trying to finish reading my book in peace, I can not concentrate with your infernal racket!"

" I'm sorry Aunt Thora!" I yelled back.

I sighed and put my ball in my toy box, I hate when my Great Aunt Thora yells at me for singing. My Mummy use to sing Build Me Up Buttercup by The Foundations to me when I use to wake up in the night from bad dreams, I miss her more than anything and I wish I could have her back for Christmas day.

I tidied up the rest of my bedroom and Rose brought me a little coffee table up to my bedroom, she told me I could borrow it for the evening. I chose a red dress to wear for my tea party with some white tights, I tied my hair up into a ponytail, I laid out the coffee table and placed two of my cushions from my bed on the floor so we would have something to sit on.

Rose brought the food she had prepared for me and my guest to my bedroom, it all looked great. She had made a big plate of sandwiches, there was also the strawberry jam cupcake with whipped cream toppings and chocolate biscuits with chopped strawberries on them. I helped her to carry a bottle of cherryade up the stairs well she carried her surprise dessert she had made for me, it was strawberry flavoured jelly with gummi bears in it. I've never had gummi bear jelly before, but it sounds nice and can't wait to try it.

Rose had left me in my bedroom well she went to answer the door, she had told me that my guest should be here soon with his guardian Mr Wammy. I've only met Mr Wammy once, he gave me an orange flavoured lollipop and told me to call him Watari. He seems like a very kind man, he's really tall and wears a black Trilby hat.

It wasn't long until Rose returned to my bedroom with my guest, I gave him a smile as I jumped down from my bed and did a little curtsy to him. I watched him itch the back of his head as he raised one of his eyebrows at me, I think I've just embarrassed myself in front of my tea party guest.

" Okay my loves, I've got other guest to attend to..." Said Rose as she walked over to my bedroom door. " If you need anything I'll be down in the kitchen, just keep the noise down and remember to have some fun!"

" Okay Rose!" I smiled.

I watched Rose close my bedroom door behind her, I looked over at my dinner guess and watched him rocking on the heels of his feet. He had blond spiky hair and pale blue eyes, he was a lot taller than me too. He was wearing a blue long sleeved shirt, black jeans and blue sneakers, he wasn't really dressed smartly for my tea party like I am.

" Hello, my name is Elizabeth!" I smiled and twirled my ponytail around my finger. " What's your name?"

" You can call me A..." He replied.

" Like the letter A from the alphabet?" I asked and walked over to the coffee table. " Don't you have a real name?"

" It's a secret, I'm not allowed to share my true identity with you or anyone else..." He replied.

" Oh, okay..." I sighed and sat down on my cushion next to the coffee table. " Come and have some sandwiches with me, my Great Aunt's Thora's housekeeper Rose made them for us. There is some strawberry flavoured jelly too, she put gummi bears in it!"

" Gummi bear jelly, I might have known..." He tutted and put his hands in his jean pockets. "I thought I'd escape the Wammy House's dinner menu for this evening, but it seems like it's followed me here instead..."

" Don't you like jelly?" I asked.

" I do like jelly, but I thought I'd be getting something warm to eat..." He replied as he looked around my bedroom and itched the back of his head again. " Some homemade cooking for once would have been a treat, you know? That's why I agreed to come, I wanted belly ache from a full stomach for a change and not from badly cooked food..."

" Oh..." I pouted.

" But it's nice to see another kid my age though, I get lonely sometimes at the orphanage..." He sighed and picked one of my teddy bears up from my bed. " Even if you're a girl and have pretty pink fluffy stuff in your bedroom, don't you have any exciting toys with flashing lights?"

" I don't own many toys anymore, most of my toys got left at my old house in Oxford..." I replied and crossed my legs. " My Great Aunt Thora doesn't want them cluttering up her cottage, she brought me some paints and colouring books though. Would you like to do some drawing with me?"

" Maybe later, do you have any sweets?" He asked.

" No, I'm not allowed to eat many sweets because they are bad for your teeth..." I answered.

" To bad, good job I brought some with me to share with you then!" He smiled.

I watched him take a white paper bag from his jean pocket, he threw my teddy bear back on my bed and walked over to my bedroom window. He drew back one of my blue curtains, he placed his paper bag down on the window sill and claimed up onto my toy box. He placed his hands on the glass of the window and pressed his face up against it, I bet his face looked funny from the other side of the window.

" What are you looking at?" I asked.

" I'm looking at the stars..." He replied in a muffled voice. " I wanted to see if my Mum is looking down on me tonight, she is the brightest star in the night sky. That's what Watari told me anyway, he knows a lot of interesting things about mechanics and stuff..."

" Really?" I asked and got up from my cushion. " Can I have a look too?"

" Sure, there is enough room for the both of us on the toy box..." He replied and pulled his face away from the window. " You can't see them though, that's the only downside about them being in the sky. It's like that glass you see in shops sometimes, they can see you through it and you can't see them on the other side. But they're watching you and keeping you safe from bad things, do you get what I'm saying?"

" I think so, it sounds nice being watched over from the sky..." I smiled.

I walked over to my window and climbed up onto my toy box, I wonder if he his right about our Mummy's looking down on us from the sky. I like the idea if she was watching over me from the sky because I miss her more than anything in the whole wide world. My Mummy's friend Bella once told me that the stars are the eyes of the angels, they watch over you well you are sleeping and protect you from the closet monsters. I rested my chin on my hands as I looked up at the night sky, there sure is a lot of twinkly stars out tonight.

" Is your Mum in heaven too?" He asked.

" Yes, she died because she was very sick..." I replied and blew my fringe away from my eyes." She had Pneumonia, it means she had poorly lungs. I did not get to see her much when she was sick, I was not allowed to visit her in the hospital without wearing a mask over my mouth. What happened to your Mummy?"

" A bad man called the Midnight Slasher murdered my Mum, my big Sister and my dog..." He quietly replied.

" That's horrible..." I said quietly and looked at him sitting next to me. " Did the police catch him and put him jail for you?"

" No, he his still out there somewhere..." He sighed.

I looked back up at the night sky and bit at my bottom lip, I hope they catch the bad man for A soon. We sat in silence for a while, I don't really know what to say to him because I've never had a boy for a friend before. I think boys like football and rocket ships, that's what my Mummy once told me when I was about 5 years old.

" Would you like a toffee?" He heard him asked. " I won't tell anyone, it could be our little secret..."

I turned my attention to him and slightly nodded my head as I bit at my bottom lip. I'm not meant to have any sweets before my dinner, but no one will know if it's our little secret. He gave me one of his toffees, it was wrapped in pretty gold paper. I'm going to save the toffee wrapper and make a princess crown for my peg doll later.

" So, what are the grown up's eating?" He asked.

" French Cuisine, they are having some fancy wine called Anjou to go with their food..." I replied and opened my toffee's wrapper as I giggled. " They are going to eat frog's legs, the recipe was called Cuisses de Grenouille à la Provençale. I don't think frog's legs would taste nice though, they only have little legs..."

" That's gross!" He chuckled. " What else are they having?"

" French toast with onions, Beef Bourguignon and Crème Brûlée..." I smiled and popped my toffee in my mouth. " Do you want to eat now? My tummy is talking to me..."

" Sure, I'm pretty hungry too!" He replied.

We both climbed down from my toy box and sat down at the coffee table, the food that Rose had prepared for us looked delicious. She had made many different kinds of sandwich fillings, it was hard to choice which sandwich we were going to eat first. I ate most of cheese sandwiches and A managed to eat all the ham salad ones. He eats like a pig, he got salad cream all down his chin and on shirt. I helped myself to another cheese sandwich and laughed at him when he let out a loud burp, boys are gross. But he was funny though for a boy, he told me many stories about the adventures he use to have with his German Shepherd dog called Maxwell. I told him about the pen I found in the toilet on the train, I washed it and gave it to my Great Aunt Thora for a present.

" Do you want some gummi bear jelly or a strawberry jam cupcake?" I asked.

" Not right now, I'm going to explode!" He replied and lay back on the floor. " That was the best meal I've had for ages! They don't make food like that at The Wammy House, I normally have foods like sweet filled pies and sweet chicken marinade. They serve a lot of meals with sugar in them at my orphanage, I miss the simple things like vegetables and ham sometimes..."

" What are sweet filled pies?" I asked as took a big bite of my cheese sandwich. " Do they taste nice?"

" They have different kinds of fruits in them with pork, I don't really like them much..." I replied.

I placed my sandwich down on my plate and licked some butter from my finger tips, I'm getting pretty full myself now. I crawled over to A and lay down next to him on the floor, I guess I could do with a little rest before I had some gummi bear jelly. We both stared up at my bedroom's ceiling, my Great Aunt Thora had brought me some silver hanging stars for my bedroom as a moving in present. I liked them, they sparkled and reflected on my room's walls when the sun comes through my bedroom's curtains first thing in the morning.

" What's it like at your orphanage?" I asked.

" It's alright I guess..." He answered. " The gardens are pretty big there with many different types of flowers, it's good place to play hide and seek too. You should come and visit it sometime, I bet if you asked your Aunt nicely she would let you come and visit me..."

" Would you like me to visit you?" I asked.

" Yeah, you're my friend..." He replied and sat up. " That's if you want to be my friend, I haven't really got many friends at the orphanage. There is one boy, but he sits in his office all day eating strawberry shortcake and solving crimes. He's not like you though, he his very rude and looks like panda with dark circles around his eyes. I call him the panda detective, but other people call him L..."

" I bet it's fun eating cake all day, I wish I could do that..." I smiled. " Does everyone at your orphanage have letters for names?"

" Not everyone, just a selected few..." He replied.

" What happens to your real names then?" I asked.

" They get forgotten I guess, I don't think anyone at the orphanage goes under their real names anymore..." He answered as he took a strawberry jam filled cupcake from a plate on the coffee table. " You see, we all have alias names there and never get called my our first names or surnames. I get called A, but I also get called Alternative by some people..."

" Do you think I could have alias name to?" I asked.

" I guess you could, but why would you want to change your name?" He asked.

"I don't know, I thought it would be fun..." I smiled.

" Alright, do you want this cupcake?" He asked and held the cupcake towards me. " I was going to eat, but I don't want it anymore..."

" Okay!" I replied.

I got up from the floor and took the cupcake from his hand, I helped to make these cupcakes yesterday with Rose. They looked really pretty, we pipped homemade strawberry jam into them and Rose topped them off with whipped cream not long ago. I took a big bite out of my cupcake and licked some cream from my finger tips, they were delicious. I walked back over to my cushion by the coffee table, I sat down on it and placed my cupcake down on my plate. I watched A help himself to some of the gummi bear jelly, he kept smirking at me for some reason and I don't like it.

" I've just thought of an alias name for you, it could be silly though..." He laughed slightly and spooned some gummi bear jelly into his mouth. "I'm going to call you SJ, I think it suits you..."

" What does SJ mean?" I asked.

" It means strawberry jam, I've taken the first letters from each of the names and came up with SJ... " He replied as he laughed loudly and dropped his spoon in his bowl of gummi bear jelly. " You've got strawberry jam and cream mustache above your upper lip!"

I slightly pouted as I wiped the strawberry jam and cream away from my mouth. My Great Aunt Thora always told me that it was rude to laugh at people at the dinner table, but we're not at the dinner table and I guess it was a bit funny if you think about it. I smiled weakly at him and got up from my cushion. I walked over to my bedside table, I pulled a tissue from my tissue box and wiped my hands on it. I turned my attention back to A when I heard him sniggering, I hope he's not laughing at me still.

" Do you want to bounce on your bed?" He asked.

" I don't think we're allowed to do that, we could get into trouble..." I replied and threw my tissue into my pink plastic bin by my wardrobe. " I've got board games under my bed, do you want to play snakes and ladders?"

" Nah, that's boring!" He sighed.

I bit at my bottom lip as I looked around my room and sighed, I wish I owned some interesting toys. I picked one of my teddy bears up from bed, I gave it a hug and walked over to my dressing table. I looked at my reflection in my mirror and giggled when I noticed A pulling a silly faces at me from the coffee table in the corner of my mirror.

" Don't make faces or the wind will change and you'll stick like that!" I smiled and placed my teddy bear down on my dressing table. " Do you want to explore my Aunt's cottage? We could go and visit Rose in the kitchen, she may let us try some of her Crème Brûlée she was making or we could try some of those frog's legs..."

" You'd try frog's legs?" He asked.

" Yes, they could taste juicy with all the hopping they do. Also I've never tried French Cuisine before, it could be fun trying new foods..." I replied and placed my toffee wrapper on my teddy bear's head. " We can bounce down the stairs like frogs to, but very quietly in case my Aunt Thora hears us..."

" Alright, I guess that could be fun trying some French Cuisine..." He chuckled.

" Let's go then!" I smiled.

We both left my bedroom, I quietly closed my bedroom door behind and looked down the stairs when I heard classical music playing from the dinning room. My Great Aunt Thora always played music when she was eating or reading books, she told me music can be tranquil for your soul. I looked over my shoulder when I heard a shuffling sounds coming from behind me, I laughed when I saw A dancing with his arms wrapped around himself and bobbing his head to the music.

" What are you doing?" I whispered.

" I'm waltzing, that's what they do at dinner parties..." He replied.

" You're a silly boy!" I smiled.

" And you're a silly girl, but you don't see me complaining about it..." He smirked and took hold of my hand. " Let's go and try those frog's legs then before they hop away..."

" Okay..." I nodded.

We both took hold of stair's banisters on each side of the stair's walls, we both carefully jumped down each of the steps of the stairs together and made frog noises with each jump we made. I giggled and covered up my mouth when A licked his tongue out at me, I think I'm going to like having a boy for a friend.


	4. The Strange Boy

**Hey, Nukia here!**

**This fanfiction is a side story to Beyond This Love.**

**I wrote this chapter last week sometime, but I've been too busy to post it up. I always find that I can write a chapter quicker when it's shorter. I think I'm going to concentrate on this fanfiction for a while, I will get back to Beyond This Love at some point. I just want to finish this one first, then the rest will hopefully be easy and I hope people are enjoying this because I've got no idea if people are reading this story anymore. I'm going to be busy for the next two weeks, so I'll try my best with updating.**

**But thank you for the reviews ( even if there is just 6 ), favorites and the alerts! Also to the unknown people who read my fanfictions, I promise it will pick up at some point! If you don't like it, then don't read it.**

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><p><strong>Chapter 4! <strong>

Christmas had come and gone, it felt strange being in my Aunt's cottage for my first Christmas without my Mother. Rose had made me feel welcome and my Aunt had brought me many presents even though they were very old fashioned, but I guess it's the thought that counts. I got changed into my blue woolen dress and white coloured tights, I was going out for a walk this morning down by the bridge which wasn't that far from the cottage.

I grabbed my yellow raincoat from the hallway and put it on while I made my way to the kitchen, I then told Rose I was going down to the bridge now. She told me not to be gone too long and to wrapped up in case I caught a chill, she also mentioned that the bridge could sometimes be slippy after it had rained. I told her okay has I fastened my buttons up on my raincoat and put my woolly hat on my head, I then said goodbye to her before I left the kitchen by the back door.

The sky was very blue today and the birds were singing in the trees, it was a nice day even if it was cold this morning. I put my wellington boots on which were left at the back door, they were still muddy from yesterday when I went walking with Rose in the field behind the cottage. I hurried down the garden's pathway and out of the wooden gate at the bottom of the garden, I couldn't wait to stretched my legs before lunch I thought to myself has I began to run across the overgrown field.

I loved the location of my Aunt Thora's cottage, it maybe quiet around here and very creepy at night though. But it was also pretty and peaceful, I bet when it's Summertime the fields around here will be swarming with wildlife. I could now see the bridge in the distance near the woods, but I swore I could see someone standing on the banister of the bridge. It could be my eyes playing tricks on me because the sun was shining brightly today, but it looked like a person was balancing on the bridge's banister.

I began to slow down when I got to the pathway that led to the bridge, I could now see that the person was in fact a boy. He was quite tall with black messy hair and pale skin, he looked around my age. He was wearing a black hoody and blue jeans, he soon jumped down from the bridge's banister when he saw me stop my the entrance of the bridge.

" Hello, where are you from?" I asked while I rested my hand on the banister of the bridge and gave him a smile. " Do you live around here? I'm from the cottage over there just beyond those bushes, it's my Aunt's cottage..."

" I live far from here, you would have to enter the woods to get to the location where I live..." He replied with a smirk as he walked over to me and leaned back on the banister of the bridge. " I live in a house with many unintelligent children, it's a cage for the unwanted and twisted children with gifts from the unknown..."

" That doesn't sound very pleasant, but the nearest house from my Aunt's cottage is an orphanage..." I said with a sigh. " I'm unsure though about houses on the other side of the woods though, how long did it take you to get here?"

" Not that long, I'm a quick runner when I'm being chased through the woods by my elders ..." He replied with a chuckle while his gaze turned to me. " Tell me, does anyone else know that you're at the bridge today all by yourself?"

" Of course, I always tell my Aunt's housekeeper where I am..." I replied.

" Pity..." He chuckled.

I watched has the boy took something from his hoody's pocket, he then asked me if I would like to play a game with him. I told him I may play a game with him if he told me the name of the game first, but he just chuckled at me while he showed me a jar of strawberry jam. I gave him a small smile and turned my gaze to the water of the stream which was running underneath the bridge, he then began to speak with me while I watched the stream.

" Do you like strawberry jam?" He asked.

" Yes, it's nice on hot buttered toast..." I replied.

" How disgusting, I like strawberry jam straight from the jar..." He said.

" I think that sounds quite disgusting if you ask me, it would rot your teeth over time..." I said while I looked up from the stream at him. " Doesn't it ever make you feel sick or gives you an aching stomach?"

" Never, it fuels my mind and keeps my brain active for my studies..." He replied and removed the lid from his jar of jam. " There is nothing worse than the stupidity of others, this is why sugar keeps your brain alive and buzzing with waves of knowledge..."

" You mean for your school work?" I asked.

" You could say that my dear, but school work never came into my criminological studies..." He replied.

" I see..." I said.

I watched the boy smirk has he dipped his fingers into his sticky jam of the jar, he stirred them around in the jam until he removed them. I couldn't help but pull a face over his odd habit, he was truly the strangest boy I had ever met in the town of Winchester so far. He licked all of the jam away from his fingers and screwed the lid back onto his jar, he then asked me again if I would like to play a game with him.

" What kind of game?" I asked.

" A game only you and I could play, I like to call it contusions of innocent souls..." He replied with a smirk while he eyed me up and down. " There is something very odd about you Elizabeth Mirabella Mayhem, your lifespan is different to other people I encounter in my day to day life..."

" How do you know my name?" I asked.

" I can see your name with my unnatural eyes, you interest me with your frozen lifespan..." He replied.

The boy chuckled has he turned his gaze away from me, something tells me I'm not going to get any answers from him. I told him that I had to go now because I would be missed if I didn't return back home before my lunch was ready, but what he did next frightened me. He grabbed hold of my raincoat's sleeve and roughly yanked me across the bridge, I then told him to let me go while I kicked his left leg.

The boy told me to stop it has he pushed me to the ground, he also mentioned that I was ruining his game with a cruel smirk on his face. I told him I didn't want t play with him while I quickly got up from the ground, I then hurried back along to the entrance of the bridge and yelled when I felt a sharp pain on the back of my left leg.

I stumbled slightly has I made my way onto the pathway, but when I glanced over my shoulder there was a jar of strawberry jam rolling down the pathway. I glanced over at the boy and to my surprise he was making his way back into the woods, he must have thrown his jar of strawberry jam at me I thought to myself as I hurried up the pathway towards my Aunt's cottage.

I fell over a few times until I got to the back gate of the cottage's garden, the pain on the back of my left leg was getting really sore now. I leaned back against the gate and looked around at my surrounds before I checked on my leg, but I couldn't really see my leg while I had my white tights on. I took a look at my raincoat next and it was cover in mud, I even had dirty marks on the knee parts of my tights. I could help but sob over what had just happened at me, I don't understand why he had thrown his jar of jam at me or why he wanted to play horrible games with me.

I took a few moments to claim myself down before I opened the back gate of the garden, I didn't want Rose to know what happened to me just now or that I had been crying over it. I closed the garden's gate behind me and limped down the pathway towards the cottage, I then took my wellington boots off by the back door. I placed then by the back door's steps and slowly opened the door to the kitchen, I just hope I don't get into trouble I thought to myself as I walked through the doorway.

I closed the kitchen's back door behind me and called to Rose while I entered the kitchen, but when she looked at my over her shoulder she gasped loudly. I jumped slightly when she hurried over to me and began to unbutton the buttons on my raincoat, she told me not to move while I took my hat off my head.

" Oh my dear child, are you alright?" She asked with a hint of concern in her voice. " You're has muddy has a pigsty, have you been rolling in mud?"

" I'm okay, I just slipped down by the bridge while I was collecting leaves and twisted my ankle..." I replied while she helped me take my raincoat off for me. " I will go upstairs right away and get cleaned up before lunch, I don't want my Aunt Thora seeing me like this because she may scold me if I get mud on her hallway carpet..."

" Okay my love, but be careful going up those stairs and getting into the bathtub..." She said with smile. " I'll have a little look at your ankle in a little while for you in case it's swollen, but I did tell you to be careful down by that bridge. Just look at your tights and fingernails, you look like a little muddy scarecrow..."

" I'm really sorry Rose..." I sniffled and let out low sob while I brought my hands to my mouth. " I didn't mean to do it, I'm so sorry!"

" It's okay my love, I know it was just an accident..." She softly said while she put her arm around me and kissed the top of my head. " Now don't you get upset, we're have you right has rain and all cleaned up before lunch is served. Let's keep this little incident to ourselves and I will tell your Aunt that you fell, I will not breath a word about your muddy clothes to Miss Havisham... "

" Okay..." I nodded.

" That's my girl, let's get you cleaned up then..." She said.

Rose told to me go and get some clean clothes from my bedroom, she then said she would fill the bathtub for me with hot bubbly water. I gave her a nod of my head has I watched her leave the kitchen, she then yelled to me to get some bubble bath from one of the shopping bags near the fridge. I did what she asked and joined her in the bathroom upstairs, I just hope she doesn't stay with me while I have my bath I thought to myself while I went to get my clean clothes from my bedroom.


	5. Charity Event

**Hey, Nukia here!**

**My summary is still bad, I think I'll change it later when I get a feel for The Wammy House Memories and understand where my plot is going. This fanfiction is a side story to Beyond This Love.**

**I wrote this chapter pretty slow, I had one of those very lazy writing moments and my laptop broke! So I couldn't write anything for a while, I'm not feeling the love right now for my writing and I'm hoping it will pick up soon. I'm still new to this style of writing, I worry each time I post up a chapter because I keep getting guest hate for some reason o.o It's been happening since I began rewriting my fanfictions...**

**But thank you for the reviews ( even if there is just 4 ), favorites and the alerts! Also to the unknown people who read my fanfictions, I promise it will pick up at some point! If you don't like it, then don't read it.**

**Chapter 5!**

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><p>I walked slowly into the kitchen as I yawned, it had just turned 8am and I didn't have to go to school today. The public school I normally go to three times a week had two teacher training days, but it was okay I guess because it meant I had a four-day weekend. But I still had to get up early so I didn't disrupt my sleeping pattern, my Aunt Thora wouldn't allow me to have a lie-in unless it was the school holidays or if I was really ill. I sat down at the kitchen table and sighed to myself, the back of my leg still hurt a little. It had nearly been a week since that strange boy had thrown his jar of jam at me, I didn't tell my Aunt or Rose what really happened and just told them that I had slipped on the bridge when I was collecting leaves.<p>

" Good morning my love!" I heard Rose say as she placed my breakfast down in front of me. " Your Aunt will be down in a while, she is taking you with her on one of her business meetings today. I hear it's with Mr Wammy, you and your Aunt have been invited to a charity event at the Wammy House. You'll be able to wear one of those lovely dresses your Aunt as brought you, doesn't that sound exciting? "

" Do I have to go?" I asked.

" Of course! You're Miss Havisham's plus one, it's your job to keep an eye on her handbag well she is socializing with very important business contacts. Also you've got to keep a check on how many sherries she is drinking well she is there, they go straight to her head..." She cheerfully replied and placed a tablespoon down by my bowl. " You'll only get bored if you stay here with me, I've got to clean your Aunt's study and bedroom today. I'd rather being going to a fancy charity event than cleaning this old cottage from top to bottom..."

" I'd rather stay here with you instead and clean the cottage..." I sighed.

" Don't be a party pooper Elizabeth, it's all been arranged for you to accompany your Aunt..." She smiled, she brushed down some of hair and kissed the top of my head. " You'll be fine, I bet your little friend A will be there. He can give you the grand tour of the Wammy House, it's a very large and beautiful building with many old antiques and the estate is just stunning in the Summer!"

" I've already visited the Wammy House with my Aunt a few months ago, I didn't like it much there..." I yawned and picked my spoon up from the table. " It smelt funny and the food they service to the children there is very sweet, I'm surprised none of their teeth haven't fallen out yet. I also heard some screams coming from the floor above A's bedroom when I last visited him, it frightened me..."

" It's all in your head my dear, I'll get you some hot tea..." She smiled.

I ate some of my breakfast as I watched Rose putting the ingredients she used to make the porridge back in the cupboard, it can't be all in my head because A heard the screams too. I know A told me about a new boy who was staying in the room above him, I wonder if the screams I heard belonged to him or maybe a ghost. I tapped my spoon against my bottom lip and looked over at the kitchen's window, I wonder if the Wammy House is haunted? I gave Rose a smile as she place a cup of tea next to my bowl and looked up at her.

" Rose, do believe in ghosts?" I asked.

" Maybe, why do you ask?" She smiled.

" Well, the last time I visited The Wammy House I swear I heard some eerie screams coming from the floor above A's bedroom!" I replied. " They weren't playful screams like you sometimes hear when children are playing, they sounded more like frightened screams and there was crying too!"

" Oh? Maybe you heard one of the many spirits that haunt the Wammy House, I doubt Mr Wammy would let any of the orphans under his care be mistreated..." She said softy, she walked over to the kitchen's sink and put her yellow washing up gloves on as she looked over her shoulder at me. " That building is very old after all, I bet if those walls could talk they would tell you so many interesting stories. I heard it was used as a hospital in World War II before Mr Wammy established it as an orphanage, I bet if you asked A nicely he would help you find some history records on the building in the library they've got at the orphanage. It would pass some of the time well Miss Havisham is socializing or you could both go on a ghost hunt around the building, now doesn't that sound fun!"

" I don't think I want to go on a ghost hunt with A, I'd rather explore the library though!" I smiled. " Do you think Watari would allow me to visit the library well my Aunt Thora is at the charity event?"

" I don't see why he wouldn't let you, Mr Wammy is a lovely gentleman after all!" She replied. " Maybe you could ask him about the screams you heard, he's been living in that old building for over 50 years now and I bet he knows that place better than anyone who lives or works there. But with an old building like that it could have just been the wind or very creaky floorboards, you may have imagined it..."

" I wasn't imaging things, I really did hear someone screaming!" I sighed.

" Okay then my love, if you weren't imaging things then it could have been a bird of some kind or the spirits of Wammy House..." She laughed slightly as she picked a dirty dish from the draining board. " Now eat your porridge before it goes cold! You've got to go and take a bath before lunch time, the charity event starts at 2:30pm and you've got to be ready by 1pm on the dot for when the chauffeur driver gets here! It's a half an hour drive to The Wammy House, so just make sure you're ready by then for my sake... "

" I don't think the Wammy House is haunted, but I did hear the screams and A heard them too!" I said and spooned some of my porridge into my mouth. " He told me that it was a new boy they had to keep isolated from the other children who lived in the orphanage, he also told me that the boy was a violent lunatic with sociopathic tendencies which makes him hard to con..."

" Pish posh!" She interrupted. " I think A was pulling your leg my love, now eat your breakfast before it gets cold. I would also appreciate it if you would stop all of this talk about ghosts and an isolated boy, your Aunt will be down soon. I don't think she would want to hear about haunted buildings and eerie screams well she is reading her morning newspaper!"

" Okay, do you think I could watch television for a while after breakfast?" I asked.

" I don't see it being a problem, just keep the volume to a low-level so you don't disturb your Aunt..." She replied.

" Okay..." I nodded.

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><p>I stared at my refection in my dressing table's mirror, it was after 12pm and Rose insisted on helping me get ready for the charity event. I sat still as she brushed through my hair, she carefully put my red silk headband in my hair and walked over to my wardrobe. I watched her going through my clothes hanging up in my wardrobe, I shook my head at her a few times when she showed me different dresses. I jumped down from my dressing table's stool and carefully put a pair of pale white tights on.<p>

" You can't keep shaking your head at me young lady over each dress I show you! Now what about this one?" She asked, she held a plain dark green dress up in front of her and smiled. " This one is nice, it's very smart..."

" Can I wear my blue dress with the rainbow brooch on it instead? I asked.

" No Elizabeth, you've got to wear something smart and plain..." She replied and took another dress from the wardrobe. " Oh look! It's the tartan dress Miss Havisham brought you for your birthday, I think it's about time it got an airing and had a chance of being worn just the once. What do you think?"

I made a disgusted sound as I stuck my tongue out of my mouth and shook my head at her, I didn't like the dress that my Aunt Thora had brought me for my birthday. It was a knee-length black cotton dress with a green tartan hem and a giant green tartan bow on the back of the dress, I swear my Aunt thinks I'm a little kid still sometimes.

" I don't like that dress, the collar on it makes my neck itch..." I sighed.

" I think you'd look very smart in it, it's this dress or a black bin bag..." She smiled.

" I choose the black bin bag!" I laughed as I jumped onto my bed and quickly stood up on it. " At least a bin bag won't aggravate the back of my neck!"

" Don't be silly, you're wearing your tartan dress now after that little outburst..." She smiled and took the tartan dress from the hangar. " I bet your Aunt would love to see you wearing it just the once, now get down from your bed and get changed into your dress!"

" Okay..." I sighed.

I jumped down from my bed and let Rose help me put my tartan dress on, I guess I could tolerate wearing it just this once for my Aunt Thora. I grabbed a pair of my black patent buckle shoes, I quickly put them on and picked my little dark green handbag up from my bed. I had put some lollipops and cookies in my purse in case I felt hungry later on, I heard food at the Wammy House didn't taste very nice at times. I quickly left my bedroom and went to sit in the living room with my Aunt, she was wearing an elegant long green dress with a brown coloured fake fur coat. I sat and watched her fanning herself until the chauffeur came to collect us.

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><p>It wasn't long before the car pulled up outside of the Wammy House, I looked through the car's window and watched some children run out of the entrance of the building. I saw Watari walk out of the building with a small group of children, I watched him talk to a young boy as I got out of the car with my Aunt. I held my Aunt's hand as we walked over to the entrance of the building to meet him. He led us into the building and insisted in escorting us both to the event's hall, he told us about a new venture he was planning to undertake in the next few weeks as he walked with us along the corridor.<p>

I sighed to myself as I let go of my Aunt's, I didn't really pay much attention to the conversation my Aunt and Watari were having and decided to turn my attention to the beautifully tiled floor of the corridor. I put my finger tips to my lips as I silently counted the triangles on brown tiles, my thoughts went back to what I spoke about with Rose earlier about the screams I heard when I was with A. I wonder if Watari believes in ghosts, I guess it wouldn't hurt if I asked him. I looked up at my Aunt as I took hold of her hand again and gently tugged at it.

" Excuse me Aunt Thora, but may I ask Mr Wammy a question?" I asked.

" Seeing as you asked so politely, then you may ask him your question..." My Aunt replied as she fanned herself. " Make it quick though, we were in the middle of discussing his venture..."

" Okay..." I nodded and let go of her hand. " Mr Wammy, do you believe in ghosts?"

" Elizabeth! " I heard my Aunt half yell as she gently tapped her fan on the top of my head. " Mr Wammy does not want to be asked extramundane questions, now apologize!"

" I'm sorry Mr Wammy..." I sighed.

I cupped my hands together as I continued walking down the corridor with my Aunt and Watari, I hate when she scolds me in public. I sighed to myself and looked at the framed paintings on the wall as I played with my fingers, Rose was right about Watari having a lot of art work around the building. He even framed some of the children's drawing which brightened up the corridors, I looked into a few classes as I walked past them and stopped when someone made eye contact with me from the last classroom of the corridor. I tilted my head slightly as the boy gave me a creepy smirk, I bit at my bottom lip as I recognised his smirk. It was him, the boy who threw his jar of jam at me on the bridge near my cottage.

" Elizabeth, please do not fall behind!" I heard my Aunt call.

" I'm coming!" I yelled.

I quickly followed after my Aunt and caught up with her as she entered the event's hall with Watari. I looked around the hall, it was decorated with colourful paper decorations and flowers stands filled with white roses. Each table was set out ready for the dinner courses, there were bottles of wine on fancy wooden tea trolleys and crystal wine glasses being placed on each of the tables.

I was sat at a table with my Aunt Thora and a few other of Watari's guests, I didn't really know anyone sitting at the table with us. I listened to them all talking amongst each other about their businesses and fundraising ideas they were working on well they ate the food courses that were placed down in front of them. I sighed to myself as I broke my prawn salad sandwich in half, it was just after 4pm now and the evening was dragging. The table had emptied quickly after dessert, the guests from our table had gone to mingle with other the guests. I took a small bite out of my sandwich and scanned the room for my Aunt, she had decided to go and talk to a few new charity advisers.

" I want to go home..." I muttered to myself.

" Don't we all, I'd rather be hundred miles away from these party-less people..." I heard a familiar voice say from next to me. " But it's an important yearly event, what can we do about it?"

" Hello A, you took your time..." I answered, I turned myself around on my chair to face him and gave him a smile. " Do you want to go and play cards in your room?"

" Not right now, but I'm here to save what's left of your sanity! Do you mind if I sit here next to you?" He asked as he pulled a chair away from the table. " I've got to mind my P's and Q's so Watari says for the evening, but these kind of events make me nervous..."

" I think my sanity left me about an hour ago, this charity event is very boring..." I sighed.

I rested my chin on my hands as I watched A sit down at the table, he glanced around the hall and turned his attention back to me as he leant back in the chair he was sitting on. He was wearing his normal baggy black jeans and white t-shirt with his favorite denim jacket. I gave him a small smile as I twirled a piece of my hair around my finger, he pulled his knees to his chest and licked his tongue out at me.

" The Lucky Charm's Leprechaun just called, he wants his dress back..." He quietly laughed.

" Excuse me?" I asked.

" Your dress, he wants it back..." He replied.

" What about my dress?" I asked.

" Never-mind, you never seem to get any of my jokes..." He smiled.

" It's because none of your jokes are ever funny..." I smiled as I sat up straight on my chair. " My Aunt Thora brought me this dress for my birthday, I don't like it and it's itchy..."

" I know she brought it for your birthday, but it's hideous!" He sniggered slightly and took a chocolate flavoured cream cake from the silver cake-stand in the middle of the table." But why would you wear something like that to a charity event?"

" I'm wearing it because Rose told me to wear it for being silly, I told her I would rather wear a black bin bag than this dress..." I replied. " But I know it's not pretty and it makes me look like a stupid little tartan troll, but I don't want to hurt my Aunt's feelings because she does a lot for me..."

" I already knew you looked like troll, but you don't have to broadcast it to all of the guests!" He smirked.

I watched A take a big bite out of the chocolate flavoured cream cake, he licked some of the cream away from his top lip and leant back against the chair as he stuffed the rest of the cake into his mouth. I looked over at my Aunt and watched her talking to a young dark-haired woman wearing a beautiful blue dress, she hasn't even been back to check on me once since she left the table. I turned my attention back to A and saw him stuffing another cream cake into his mouth, I wonder if he would take me to the library if I asked him.

" A, will you take me to the library please?" I asked.

" Why? I'm happy just sitting here keeping you company and eating all these cream cakes for a while..." He replied with his mouth full, he sat up straight and took another cake from the cake-stand. " I don't really want to sit in a stuffy old library when these delicious cakes are begging me to eat them all! This food is way better than what they service in the cafeteria at lunch time, I wonder if there is any of those fancy sandwiches left that I saw when I came in here?"

" Please A, I really want to go and explore the library..." I pouted. " Just for half an hour, then we can come back and eat some more cream cakes!"

" Alright!" He sighed. " But you've got to get hold of some of those fancy sandwiches before I take you anywhere, I know there is a tray full of them on a table near the main entrance of this room..."

" Okay, I'll get you some fancy sandwiches..." I nodded.

I grabbed my little bag from the table, I slid from my chair and looked around the hall. I nodded to A as we walked together over to the table where he saw the sandwiches, I carefully picked the silver tray up from the table and quickly left the hall with him. He took a few of the sandwiches from the tray, he ate them as we walked together down the corridor and turned left into another corridor.

" Do you think anyone saw us taking the sandwiches?" I asked.

" I don't think anyone noticed that we even left the hall, they all seem busy anyway with the talking and mingling..." He replied with a mouth full of food. " Why do you want to go to the library anyway? It's not the most interesting place in the building, I could take you out back to the cemetery if you want and show you some strange gravestones I found behind some bushes yesterday..."

" I want to do some research about the Wammy House, I was told that the building was used as a hospital during World War II..." I answered.

" Who told you that?" He asked.

" Rose, she said it would pass some of the time well my Aunt is socializing..." I replied.

" Alright, I guess it would be interesting to research that subject for a while..." He smiled and took the silver tray from my hands. " But I'll warn you now, there is a lot of dust in some parts of the library. Most sections are off-limits to most of the children who live here, I for one can only access some parts of the library with adult supervision. But I think the books about the Wammy House's history maybe kept on the second floor of the library, I'll check the booking system before we go up there just to be sure..."

" Okay..." I nodded.

It wasn't long until we got to library, it really was a big place. There was a metal spiral staircase in the middle of the room and a colourful medium-sized arched stain-glass window behind an office desk, this library was just beautiful. I've never seen so many books in one place before, I looked over at A as he placed the silver tray down on a table and made his way over to the office desk with a computer on it. I took a book from a section called Celtic science, I walked over to the table and sat down on the floor next to one of the chairs as I opened the book. It was about how the Celts were more advanced than the Romans in some scientific and economic aspects. I turned a page in the book and place my bag down on the chair as I continued to look through it.

" Here we go!" I heard A say as he sat down next to me. " I've only found two volumes about the Wammy House, but it's a start..."

" Thank you..." I smiled.

" Why do you want to look up the history of the Wammy House anyway?" He asked.

" I just thought it would be interesting to learn about the building..." I replied, I picked one of the volumes up from the floor and opened it. " Does the library have any death records available?"

" Whoa there SJ, that's a bit morbid!" He chuckled.

" I didn't mean it in that way silly, I just wanted to know who as died here when it was a hospital..." I said quietly. " Do you remember those screams we heard that day when we were playing in your room, do you think it was a ghost instead of the boy you told me about?"

" This place is not haunted, I don't know who's put that idea in your head..." He smiled.

" Rose said the screams could have been spirits, she didn't believe me about the screams we heard..." I sighed. " She told me that I could have been imaging things and that Watari would never mistreat any of the children at the orphanage, is that true?"

" Of course, he wouldn't hurt a fly!" He replied.

" That's good, I hate when flies get squished..." I giggled.

" Did you hear that?" He asked.

" Heard what?" I asked.

" I could have sworn I just heard the floorboards creaking from upstairs part of the library, I think I'm going to take a quick look around the library in case it's Miss Joyce. She's the librarian here, she likes knowing if there is people in here well she is working and she also doesn't like food in the library..." He replied, he got up from the floor and picked a book up from the table. " Wait here, I won't be long..."

" Can I come with you?" I asked.

" No..." He replied.

" Please, I don't want to be left down here all by myself!" I sighed and chewed at my bottom lip. " What if it isn't the librarian?"

" I don't know, scream really loud maybe..." He chuckled.

" That's not funny!" I frowned.

" You'll be okay here for a moment by yourself, I won't go far..." He smiled.

" What about the sandwiches?" I asked. " What if we get into trouble for having them in the library?"

" Don't worry Elizabeth, I'll deal with Miss Joyce if she's here still..." He replied, he took a sandwich from the tray and took a big bite out of it. " She likes me anyway, so just don't move and I'll be back in a jiffy!"

" Okay, just hurry up!" I sighed.

I watched A walk over to the metal spiral staircases in the middle of the room, I got up from the floor and listened to his footsteps on the steps as he quickly ran up the staircase. I picked the Celtic science book up from the floor and walked over to the book section I got it from, I better put the book back in case it is the librarian. I carefully began to put the book back in it's empty slot on the bookshelf and stopped when I noticed a pair of crimson eyes staring at me through a gap in the bookcase.


	6. Frozen Lifespan

**Hey, Nukia here!**

**My summary is still bad, I think I'll change it later when I get a feel for The Wammy House Memories and understand where my plot is going. This fanfiction is a side story to Beyond This Love, you'll understand what is going on at some point. **

**I wrote this chapter pretty slow, I had one of those very lazy writing moments, I'm not feeling the love right now for my writing and I'm hoping it will pick up soon. **

**But thank you for the reviews ( even if there is just 4 ), favorites and the alerts! Also to the unknown people who read my fanfictions, I promise it will pick up at some point! If you don't like it, then don't read it.**

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter 6!<strong>

I slightly tilted my head as I put the book back on the shelf and stood on my tip tops to get a better look at the person staring at me from the other side of the bookcase, I wonder who is watching me? Whoever those eyes belong to give me the creeps, they were a really bright shade of crimson. I wonder if it's even possible for a person to have crimson coloured eyes? Maybe the eyes don't even belong to a person, what if they belong to a monster or a demon! I quickly grabbed a thick book from the shelf and stepped away from the bookcase, I hope A gets back soon.

" Hello..." I heard a young male's voice say from the other side of the bookcase. " May I ask what you plan to do with that book? You see, I need that book you are holding to complete my essay..."

" I'm planning to do nothing with it, I'm just looking at it..." I replied.

" Then you wouldn't mind letting me borrow it..." He said with a hint of a chuckle in his voice. " Why don't you come and join me the other side of the bookcase, then I can formally introduce myself to you. What do you say?"

" I can't walk properly right now, my left foot as decided to fall asleep on me..." I answered quietly and held the book out in front of me. " But you can come around to me if you want to collect the book you need for your essay, then I can introduce myself to you..."

" I will come around to join you when I've finished choosing the other books I need, but maybe we could have a conversation well I'm searching for them..." He said. " That's if you have the time between your history research about The Wammy House and your interest in old hospital death records, do you believe in spirits?"

" No, I don't believe in spirits!" I answered with laugh.

" You're not a student here, am I correct?" He asked. " I've never seen you around the orphanage before, are you one of Watari's guests for his charity event?"

" Yes, I'm here with my Great Aunt Thora. She's an old friend of Mr Wammy, she's donated large amounts of her money to The Wammy House over the years and many other good causes around the world. My Aunt visits this orphanage twice a month to have afternoon tea with Mr Wammy in his study. I'm surprised you've not met her yet, she normally likes meeting the students she supports..." I replied and took a step towards the bookcase as I bit at my bottom lip. " I've accompanied my Aunt a few times myself when she as visited Watari, do you know a teacher called Jane Couldrey by any chance?"

" I see..." He replied. " Of course I know Miss Jane, she is the head of the Mathematics Department. I also know she was the youngest person to graduate from Cambridge University at the tender age of 17, her parents lived in Warwick until their untimely death 2 years ago. Since then she's been a teacher at The Wammy House, she's a very kind and intelligent woman, but her intellect can not match mine..."

" You seem to know a lot about her, are you one of her students?" I asked.

" No, I've just read most of the students and teachers private information in Watari's office..." He chuckled. " But you're a mystery to me, there is something unusual about you. My eyes see things you cannot even imagine, your death date is unknown to me..."

" What do mean by that?" I asked.

" I can't see when you're going to die, you're an enigma to me..." He replied.

" No one knows their death date, you're morbid!" I laughed slightly and rocked gently on the heels. " Would you like sandwich? There is plenty of them left, I don't think my friend A would mind sharing them with you..."

" Is there any strawberry jam sandwiches on that tray?" He asked. " I could just throw a jar of strawberry jam at someone for a jam sandwich right now, my dinner was so long ago..."

" No, there is just prawn salad sandwiches on the tray..." I mumbled as I stopped rocking on my heels and frowned slightly. " Who are you?"

" Do you really need to know?" He asked.

" Yes!" I replied.

I watched as a tall boy walked from behind the bookcase, he placed a pile of books down on the floor and let his fringe fall over his eyes as he stood up straight. His hair was black, his skin was slightly tanned and then I noticed his smirk. He was the boy from bridge, he really was a student here. I thought I was seeing things when I saw him in the classroom, but why are his eyes crimson? It doesn't make any sense, his eyes where dark when I saw him on the bridge and in the classroom not long ago. I began to slowly back away from him, I wrapped my arms around the book I was holding and bit at my bottom lip when he started walking towards me. I stopped when I felt the table brush against the back of my legs, I leant back against the table and held the book out in front of me.

" Your eyes!" I said with a hint of panic in voice. " W-w-what are you?! You're him, the boy from the bridge who hurt my leg!"

" I'm human just like you, a very special human with the ability to see your name and lifespan..." He replied, he stopped in front of me and took hold of the book in my hands. " Can I please have this book now? You are delaying my studies, my essay needs to be finished by the morning..."

" Who are you?!" I asked.

" Does my name really matter to you?" He asked.

" No, but I would like to know who you are before I let you take this book!" I replied and tightened my grip around the book. " I would also like to know why you threw that jar of jam at me, what have I ever done to you?!"

" Did your leg contuse?" He asked with a smirk. " I believe the throwing force that I used behind my jam jar may have caused quite bad contusions on the calf of your leg, how painful was it? I like feed back on my experiments... "

" You're twisted..." I replied quietly.

" I could show you how twisted I can be if you would allow me, but I don't think you're game..." He smirked as he looked down at the book I was holding. " I always wanted to see each stage of a person who as suffered from blunt force trauma to their cranium, I bet it would be an interesting experiment. Would you like to be my lab rat?"

" Hey!" I heard A's voice yelled from above me." What do you think you are doing?!"

I quickly looked up at the upstairs part of the library above me, I saw A looking over the banisters with an angry expression on his face. I felt the book I was holding in my hands get snatched away from me, I turned my attention back to the boy and watched him quickly walk back behind the bookcase.I heard footsteps rushing down the metal spiral staircase, I saw A rush past me and disappear behind the bookcase.

" Will you please remove yourself from my sight, your presence is annoying me..." I heard the boy say with a hint of boredom in his voice. " Especially when I'm working on my essay about the intrusion detection system, I've also got other things I need to attendant to before lights out..."

" You know very well that you're not meant to be in the library all alone, especially in the homicide section without Watari or a teacher supervising you!" I heard A yell." Go back to Miss Ryan's classroom now Backup! There are high-class charity people in the event's hall, you're not even meant to be out of the science room alone because you're a high risk case!"

" A high risk case, me?" I heard the boy chuckle. " You're talk nonsense as always, I suggest you go back to your companion and keep her company for the evening instead of me. You'll only get in the way of my research, so go and eat your fancy sandwiches with your friend well I concentrate on my education..."

" You know I'm going to have to report you to Watari now, you're not even meant to be left unsupervised! Where is Miss Ryan?" I head A ask. " Isn't she meant to be watching you? Also, where are your contact lenses? You know very well you're meant to wear them at all times when we have visitors to The Wammy House, you're breaking more rules than a fat kid on thin ice!"

" Your whit amuses me, Miss Ryan is taking her evening coffee break. She will be back shortly to keep an eye on me..." I heard the boy chuckle. " Now if you would excuse me, I need to have complete silence well I research. This is a library after all, now remove yourself from my sight!"

" I'm not going anywhere until Miss Ryan returns, you can't be trusted by yourself!" I heard A say as he reappeared from behind the bookcase. " Come and sit with us for a while, I just hope you're telling the truth about Miss Ryan..."

" Why would I lie about Miss Ryan?" Asked the boy, he peeped his head from behind the bookcase and smirked. " You know that I'm more than likely to tell the truth in front of our visitors, you really need to learn to trust me more my dear Alternative..."

" I wouldn't trust you if they paid me in toffee!" Sighed A.

" You're to young to be earning a wage..." He smirked.

" It was a figure of speech!" Sighed A.

" And what about her?" He asked. " Can she be trusted?"

" Of course she can! She's a friend of mine, I trust her more than you..." Replied A.

" She's been lying to you, I know her too..." He smirked.

" You know Backup?" Asked A.

" He's an acquaintance, I met him near the bridge not far from my cottage a few weeks ago..." I replied quietly as I picked my bag up from the chair. " I would like to change what I said, he's a brief acquaintance I would like to forget..."

" How brief?" Asked A, he crossed his arms across his chest and looked over his shoulder at the boy." What am I missing here?"

I watched the boy shrug his shoulders at A, he really wasn't going to tell him how he knew me. I guess that's a good thing, if anyone knew what that boy did to me then he may get into trouble with Watari or even punished for his bad behaviour. I don't want him to be punished even if I find him creepy, but I don't want A to find out about what he did to me either. I bit at my bottom lip as I turned my attention to the tray of sandwiches on the table, I took one of the sandwiches from the tray and took a small bite out of it.

" Elizabeth..." I heard the boy say in an eerie tone. " May I ask how your leg is?"

" I don't know what you're talking about..." I replied and continued to eat my sandwich. " I think you may have the wrong Elizabeth, my leg is perfectly fine thank you!"

" Surely you haven't forgotten already..." He chuckled.

" Something weird is going on here, I feel an icy presences between you both and I'm not talking about the library's air conditioning above me..." Sighed A, he walked over to me and sat down on the table as he gave me friendly smile. " You can trust me, what's Backup on about?"

" Backup?" I asked as I looked over at the boy. " Is that his name?"

" No, his name is B..." Replied A.

" B..." I muttered under my breath as I took another sandwich from the tray. " I think I should be going now, my Aunt will be wondering where I've gotten to. In fact, I'm meant to be taking care of her and making sure she doesn't drink too much sherry..."

" You've only been gone from the party for half an hour, I don't think your Aunt would mind you hanging out in the library with me for a little longer..." Smiled A. " You've still not told me how you know Backup and what's all this business about your leg? Did you hurt yourself well I was gone?"

" My foot fell asleep, that's all!" I replied, I looked over at Backup and raised one of my eyebrows at him. " Right?"

" She's still lying to you my dear Alternative, she's not a very good friend if you ask me..." Smirked B, he disappeared back behind the bookcase and chuckled to himself. " Have a pleasant even Miss Elizabeth Mirabella Mayhem, maybe I will bump into again someday without A tagging along..."

" Hey! She was hanging out with me first before you butted in and made her feel uncomfortable!" Frowned A. " You're not allowed to socialize with her from now on, I'll make sure of that whenever she comes back to visit The Wammy House. Have you got that Backup?"

" Perfectly clear, I shall not socialize with you when she is around..." Replied Backup with a chuckle." Now would you silence yourself, this is a library after all..."

" Stop twisting my words around!" Sighed A.

" I really think I should go now, it's getting late..." I sighed and placed my uneaten sandwiches down on the silver tray. " A, will you please walk me back to the event's hall?"

" Come on SJ, don't be a stick in the mud!" Smiled A as he jumped down from the table. " Come and hang out with me for a while longer, we'll go anywhere you want around The Wammy House! Have you ever visited the Art room? I think you'd like it in there, I can show you my art project I'm working on if you want. You really don't have to leave on the account of Backup over there, you just have to learn to ignore him like I do and pretend that he's nothing but passed gas..."

" How vulgar..." I heard Backup say.

" No one asked you!" Snapped A.

" No, I think I should go back to my Aunt now..." I said.

" Alright, I'll walk you back to the event's hall..." Nodded A.

I took a looked over my shoulder as I walked with A towards the doors of the library to see Backup peeping his head around the bookcase, he had a smirk painted across his face with a very creepy look in his eyes. They seemed even brighter than before when I first saw them through the gap in the bookcase, I just hope I don't have to meet him again anytime soon. I left the library with A and swung my bag at my side as I walked along the corridor with him.

" SJ, can I ask you something?" He asked.

" Sure!" I answered, I looked up at A walking next to me and gave him a small smile. " What's on your mind?"

" What did Backup say to you in the library?" He asked. " I know what he can be like, he's got a very twisted mind. But if he's said anything abnormal to you then you should tell me, I won't tell Watari or any of the teachers..."

" He said nothing important, he actually didn't really say much to me..." I replied. " We just talked about his essay mostly, but he seemed to know a lot about my home-school teacher Jane Couldrey. I didn't realize how young she was, it's a shame though about her losing her parents so young... "

" Oh right, yeah it's pretty sad what happened to them..." He sighed.

" What happened to them?" I asked.

" It's confidential information..." He replied.

" Oh..." I sighed.

" Did he say anything else to you?" He asked.

" There is one other thing that confused me, he said that my lifespan was frozen..." I answered and bit at my bottom lip as I gently itched my left cheek. " I'm not really sure what he meant by that, he spoke about his eyes being special. Do you understand any of it?"

" Nope, but I know he always goes on about unusual or disturbing things..." He answered. " I would take no notice of him and his odd rants, he's just insane!"

" Are you sure?" I asked. " He mentioned something about not being able to see when I was going to die, do you think I should speak to Watari about it?"

" Nah, just ignore everything that he said to you..." He replied as he bumped arms with me and gave me a big smile. " Hey! If cloud cuckoo land was real, he would be the lord and emperor of it. But trust me, he's not right in the head..."

" You're funny!" I smiled.

" So SJ, do you fancy some ice cream and jelly?" He asked.

" I'm kind of full from lunch, but thank you for the offer..." I smiled.

" Don't be silly! There is always room for ice cream and jelly!" He smiled and grabbed hold of my hand as quickened his walking pace. " I know for a fact that there is some jelly shaped cows and pigs in the fridge, do you want to check them out?"

" Really?" I asked.

" Yeah, it's crazy right?" He laughed. " For some reason the cooks here have began using animal shaped jelly molds, I guess it's better than fruit dragon and marshmallow rabbits!"

" Well okay, I guess it would be fun just to see jelly shaped as farm-yard animals..." I smiled.


	7. The Parcel

**Hey, Nukia here!**

**My summary is still bad, I think I'll change it later when I get a feel for The Wammy House Memories and understand where my plot is going. This fanfiction is a side story to Beyond This Love.**

**I wrote this chapter pretty slow, it's short too. I had one of those very lazy writing moments and X Men rping Pietro Maximoff on Twitter is taking over my life! I couldn't write anything for a while, I'm not feeling the love right now for my writing and I'm hoping it will pick up soon. **

**But thank you for the reviews ( even if there is just 4 ), favorites and the alerts! Also to the unknown people who read my fanfictions, I promise it will pick up at some point! If you don't like it, then don't read it.**

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter 7!<strong>

It's now the middle of May, it's been 6 months since I last visited The Wammy House with my Aunt. My Great Aunt Thora as been really ill lately, so she's not been up to going out much and spending most of her time in bed or visiting the hospital. Mr Wammy as been to visit her a few times at our cottage and brought her many pretty flowers from the grounds of The Wammy House, but he didn't bring A with him for any of those visits which is odd. I've not seen him since the charity event in December, I did ask Watari if he was okay and he told me that A will be busy with his studies for the next few months. I do miss seeing him though, I just hope I get to see him very soon and that my Aunt gets better.

" I'm so bored..." I muttered.

I sighed to myself as I placed my pencil down on my drawing pad, I looked through the living room window and watched a few birds playing in the water of the stone bird bath in the middle of the lawn. It was a lovely spring day, it was to nice to be stuck indoors. I slid from my chair and grabbed my black shoes from under the table. I walked out of the living room and made my way to the kitchen, I wonder if Rose will let me go out on my bike for a few hours.

" Rose!" I called as I walked into the kitchen. " Rose, where are you?!"

I looked around the kitchen and noticed the back door open, she must be outside. I quickly put on my shoes, I grabbed a red apple from the fruit bowl on the counter side and walked to the back door of the kitchen. I step out into the garden and saw Rose hanging out the laundry, I gave her a smile as I walked down the path towards her.

" Rose, can I go out on my bike for a while please?" I asked." I need a break from my art homework, it's giving me a headache..."

" If you want my love, but remember to wear you knee pads and helmet..." She replied as she took one of my Aunt's blouses from her laundry basket. " Maybe you could do me a favour, there is a parcel that needs to be delivered to The Wammy House. Mr Gents from the Post Office was meant to be picking it up an hour ago, but his van broken down on the way here. What do you say about cycling to The Wammy House for me? You'd be doing me a big favour, your Aunt wanted the parcel delivered by tomorrow morning..."

" You want me to cycle to The Wammy House?!" I asked with a hint of surprise in my voice." Do you think Aunt Thora will allow it?"

" I don't see it being a problem, she was very proud of you when you passed your bike program the other week..." She replied with a smile. " She is taking her afternoon nap right now, so you should be back by the time she wakes up if you leave now..."

" This is so cool!" I smiled as I jumped on the spot and let out an excited squeal. " I won't let you down!"

" Just be careful and stay to the left of the road. Also remember to signal when you turn into different roads, it's better safe than sorry..." She answered as she continued to hang washing on the line. " That's what my old Mum use to say, so be careful..."

" I will, I'll be back before you know it!" I smiled.

" Okay my love, have fun!" She smiled.

I took a bite of my apple as I walked back into the kitchen, I took the small squire parcel with an envelope attached to it from the counter side and headed to my bedroom. I got changed into my blue faded jeans and my yellow t-shirt with a green flower on it before I got my safety gear from my wardrobe. I quickly put it on and headed back downstairs. I gave Rose a smile as I took my blue backpack from the coat peg, I put the parcel in my bag and put it on. I said goodbye to her and closed the front door quietly behind me.

I got my bike from the little alleyway that led to the back garden of the cottage, I wheeled my bike out of the gateway of the front garden and closed the wooden gate behind me. I got onto my bike and glanced over my shoulder before I cycled off down the lane towards The Wammy House.

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><p>It didn't take me that long to cycle to The Wammy House which surprised me, it was a beautiful day and I didn't really mind the bike ride there. I stopped outside of the large metal entrance gates of The Wammy House grounds, I got off my bike and leant it up against the wall that surrounds the orphanage. I walked over to a buzzer by the gate, I pressed the buzzer's button and listened to it ringing out.<p>

" Hello?" I heard a man's voice asked from the other end of the gate's buzzer system. " May I ask who this is and would you please state your business?"

" Hello, my name is Elizabeth Mayhem..." I answered and leant my face closer to the buzzer's speaker pad. " I'm here to deliver a parcel to Mr Wammy from my Aunt, her name is Miss Thora Havisham..."

" I'm afraid to say My Wammy is not in residence right now..." He said. " I will have to ask you to leave and return when he his returns from his business trip, would you like me to leave him a message on your behalf?"

" But this is very important!" I frowned. " This parcel was meant to be picked up by a Mr Gents from the local Post Office in town, but his van broke down and my Aunt's Housekeeper Rose asked me to deliver it because it as to be delivered by tomorrow morning!"

" Alright!" He sighed with a hint of annoyance in his voice. " Just wait there and I will send one of the students to the main gate to collect the parcel!"

" Thank you Mr..." I began to say as I bit at my bottom lip and thought for a moment. " Excuse me sir, but what is your name? I would like to know who I am thanking, it's good manners to address a thank you to the person I am talking to by their real name..."

" My name is Mr Ruvie, now just wait there young lady!" He answered. " Someone will be out to collect your parcel from you in a few moments!"

" Okay, I understand sir..." I mumbled.

I removed my finger tip from the buzzer's button and stepped away from the gate, what a rude man. I took my backpack off as I sat down on the grass near the wall, I unzipped my bag and took the small parcel out it. I took the envelope from my bag too, I turned it over and saw that it was sealed up with sellotape. I wonder what's in the envelope? I held the envelope up towards the sky as I closed one of my eyes, I could see what looked like a chain inside the envelope and a folded up piece of paper.

" Hello again, it's been to long..." I heard someone say. " May I ask why you haven't visited The Wammy House for so long?"

I looked over at the gate and sighed to myself as I sat up straight, it was Backup. I got up from the grass and walked over to the gate as hid the parcel behind my back, I wonder what he wants? I stopped in front of the gate, he was wearing the same clothes he was dressed in when I first met him at the bridge and in library of The Wammy House. I watched him hang his arms through the gaps of the gate, he gave me a smirk and rested his forehead against the gate's bar.

" Well?" He asked. " I'm waiting for your answer, don't keep me waiting..."

" I don't know, my Aunt hasn't been well and Mr Wammy as been busy..." I replied.

" Watari is not even here, I've not seen him for a few weeks now..." He chuckled as he reached one of his hands out towards me. " What's behind your back? May I take a look?"

" It's just a parcel for Watari from my Aunt, a student is coming out to collect it for a Mr Ruvie..." I replied.

" Oh then your journey as been wasted, what a pity..." He chuckled. " Why don't you come in here and play with me for a while, I'm playing surgeon with some worms and spiders..."

" That's so cruel and disgusting!" I frowned.

" Is it?" He smirked. " It's fun you know, I like seeing how living things work from the inside..."

" Yes it's just horrible!" I answered and stepped away from the gate." Now will you please go away, I'm waiting for someone!"

" Don't be spoil sport, I'm extremely bored..." He smirked.

" No, go away!" I sighed, I walked back over to my backpack and picked it up from the grass. " I'll be going home right after this parcel is delivered, I've got homework to complete and stuff I need to do. I have no time to socialize with you, go back to your bugs!"

" But what if I'm that student who is meant to collect that parcel from you..." He smirked. " Mr Ruvie would be very annoyed if you refused to give me that parcel, you wouldn't want that now would you?"

" I highly doubt that he would send you, I don't trust you..." I said as I zipped up my backpack." What do you want anyway?"

" Nothing, I'm just bored and looking for company..." He replied with a sigh. " My Alternative as been gone far to long, I've got no one to talk to or annoy anymore..."

" What do you mean by he's gone?" I asked.

" It seems like I've got your attention finally, where as my Alternative gone?" He chuckled.

" His he okay?" I asked. " Watari told me that he was busy with his studies, but I've not seen him since the charity event..."

" He's gone away for a while with Watari and his idiotic prodigy to America, I've not spoken with him for over a month now..." He replied as he gripped his hands around the gate's bars. " I wish I could have gone to America with them, but Watari would not allow it. All those unsolved crimes, I would love to sink my teeth into them all and learn about more criminology technics!"

" What part of America have they gone to?" I asked.

" That's confidential information!" He replied and walked away from the gate. " I can't tell you which state of America they're staying in, it's a secret..."

" Okay then..." I sighed." Do you know when he'll be back?"

" Nope..." He replied.

I put my backpack on and watched Backup walk over to a tree. He quickly climbed up it which surprised me, he was like a monkey. I bit at my bottom lip as I walked back over to the gate, I watched him carefully walk along a branch and perch himself down on it. I took a deep breath and looked towards The Wammy house, I hope this student turns up soon to collect my Aunt's parcel.

" Do you want to see something cool?" I heard Backup say. " I'm quit agile..."

" No thank you, I'm okay..." I replied.

" Suit yourself..." I heard him say. " Your loss Elizabeth, you really are no fun. I don't know why my Alternative is friends with you, I think you're quite dull. Why won't you play with me?"

" I'm not listening to you, please be quiet..." I answered.

" Alright, I'll be quiet as a little white mouse in a trap..." He chuckled.

It wasn't long until I saw a young girl running along a path towards the gates, she had blonde shoulder length hair and wore a red hoody which was twice her size. I watched her stop in front of the gates, she was pretty cute and reminded me of A for some reason. She gave me a smile and itched her cheek as she looked up at Backup sitting in the tree, I wonder why Mr Ruvie would send someone so young to collect the parcel for him? I watched her for a moment until she turned her attention back to me, she smiled at me again and rocked quickly on her heels.

" Hello!" I said as I smiled at the girl. " Are you here to collect the parcel for Mr Ruvie?"

The girl nodded her head at me, she held her hands towards to me as she glanced above my head and stopped rocking on her heels. Her face suddenly dropped into a blank expression, her brown eyes widen as she stared at me. I cleared my throat as I handed her the parcel through a gap in the gate, she then looked back up at Backup again in the tree and watched him jump down from it.

" I wouldn't waste your time trying to talk to her, she will not answer you back..." He said as he did some sign langue at her and slightly smirked. " She can't talk or will not talk, she understands sign langues though..."

" Why won't she talk?" I asked.

" Who knows, tragic past maybe..." He smirked." We're all screwed up in here..."

" Well, I've got to go now..." I said, I walked over to my bike and wheeled it away from the wall. " If you see A before I do, tell him to write me a letter to say hello or come to visit me with Watari sometime. Will you remember that?"

" Why don't you tell him yourself, he will be back next week..." He chuckled.

" You said you didn't know when he was coming back!" I frowned as stopped and watched the young girl signed quit aggressive at him. " What is she saying to you?"

" She is saying that I'm a lying jerk and that I should not be horrible to outsiders..." He smirked and signed back at her. " Oh Nonie, you're to kind with your compliments!"

" She's not wrong there, you are jerk..." I muttered.

I stood and watched them signing to each other for a while, I didn't have a clue what they were saying to each other. I sighed to myself and climbed onto my bike, I guess I shall leave them to it.


	8. Can I Sleep In Your Room?

**Hey, Nukia here!**

**My summary is still bad, I think I'll change it later when I get a feel for The Wammy House Memories and understand where my plot is going. This fanfiction is a side story to Beyond This Love.**

**I wrote this chapter in one day, it's short though. I think I'm going to concentrate on this fanfiction for a while, I will get back to Beyond This Love at some point. I just think I need to get most of this one done first. **

**But thank you for the reviews ( even if there is just 6 ), favorites and the alerts! Also to the unknown people who read my fanfictions, I promise it will pick up at some point! If you don't like it, then don't read it.**

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter 8!<strong>

It's now August, its half way through the summer holidays and I finally got to see A about 3 weeks ago. He was really excited when he came to visit me with Watari, he told me all about America and the towns he visited. He couldn't tell me everything though, some of the things he saw and did were confidential. He also brought me a souvenir back with him, he got me a little silver cat brooch with green diamond eyes and a small box Twinkies. I'm glad he's back, I've missed having him around.

I sighed to myself as I put the last few cans of peas away in the pantry, I've been helping Rose with the shopping and the housework today. My Aunt Thora is having a short break at a health retreat in the Peak District, her health is improving and she as started to leave the cottage a bit more now which is great. Rose was upstairs right now, she was cleaning the bathroom and getting things ready for when my Aunt returns in the next few days. I gently closed the pantry's door behind me with my foot as I picked an empty box up from the floor, I carried it over to the kitchen table and placed it down on a chair at the table.

" Rose!" I called as I walked over to the kitchen counter and picked a small bowl of cheese and onion flavoured crisps up from the counter side. " I've finished putting all the shopping away now, can I go and watch some television until dinner is ready?! I'm going to have a snack too!"

" Sure my love!" I heard Rose answer from upstairs. " Just don't ruin your appetite, I want an empty plate today after dinner instead of a half full one!"

" I'll only going to have a few crisps, I promise I'll eat all of my dinner today!" I yelled.

" Alright my dear, no need to shout. It's a good job we don't have neighbours, we'd be on the streets if so..." She laughed as walked into the kitchen carrying a pile of folded up bath towels. " Dinner with be ready in half an hour, I'm making pasta and cheese..."

" Sounds good, what kind of pasta?" I asked.

" Panna pasta..." She replied and placed the folded up towels down on the kitchen table." Now go and watch television for a while, I'll call you when it's ready..."

" Okay!" I smiled.

I stuffed a few crisps into my mouth as I made my way to living room, I grabbed the television remote from the coffee table and sat down on the sofa. It had just turned 5:30pm, it was time for my cartoons. I love watching cartoons, my favorite cartoon is Tom and Jerry. I turned the television on, I changed it to channel 3 and placed the television remote down next to me on the sofa. I ate a few more crisps as I watched Elmer Fudd chasing Bugs Bunny with his gun, I wonder if he'll ever catch that bunny?

" Elizabeth, we've only got Cornish Yarg cheese!" I heard Rose shout from the kitchen. " Is that okay?"

" Yeah!" I replied.

I took another crisp from my bowl, I turned my full attention back to the television and frowned slightly when the news came on. I sighed as I curled my legs under myself, I wonder why the news is on so early? It's not even 6pm yet, I took a small bite out of my crisps and listened to the news reporter talking.

" Good evening, I'm Mark Wright and this is an emergency news broadcast..." He said as he picked his papers up from his news desk. " A second body as been found in the town of Martyr Worthy, Winchester. The body was found 5 hours ago in the cemetery of St Mary's Church by the local Vicar, the local police department have no leads at this very moment. The head of the Winchester police as declared that the local community should not leave their homes after 8pm, here's more with our local news reporter Mary West reporting live from outside of Hampshire Constabulary Police Headquarters ..."

I sat up straight and placed my feet down on the floor as a pretty dark-haired woman appeared on the television. She was standing outside of the Hampshire Constabulary Police Headquarters with a police officer, I picked the television remote up from the sofa and turned the volume up on the television.

" Thank you Mark..." She said with a slight nodded as she turned her attention to the police officer standing next to her. " I'm standing outside of Hampshire Constabulary Police Headquarters with the Deputy Commissioner of Winchester police department, not long ago Commissioner Ryan made a public statement. Deputy Commissioner James, is it true that the worlds greatest detective L is taking on this case?"

" That is just a rumour floating around our police department, however we do believe that there may be some connection with an old unsolved murder case that took place in the town of Stafford in 1992..." Replied Deputy Commissioner James. " A secret source unknown to our police department as come forward with information and proof that the two victims are connected to the serial killer known as The Midnight Slasher. We will be investigating along side Scotland yard and this secret source until the perpetrator is caught. Until then I advise the community to stay calm, be careful and secure your home. Do not leave your home alone unless it's an emergency, stay in groups and do not open your door unless you are expecting company at late hours. Houses that are located in secluded areas should take more care, make sure that windows and doors are locked. If you have young children I suggest you all sleep in the same bedroom, the perpetrator is extremely dangerous..."

" Have any eye witnesses come forward yet?" Asked Mary. " When will information be released about the victims?

" We have no eye witnesses at this very moment, all information will be classified until further notice..." Answered Deputy Commissioner James. " But we do encourage anyone in the community to come forward if they have seen anything odd, we want this perpetrator caught as soon as possible..."

" Thank you Deputy Commissioner James..." Said Mary as she turned her attention back to her camera crew. " Not much is known about the two victims, but our thoughts go out to their families. The community of Winchester is left reeling from the terrible events that have fallen upon our once peaceful town, this is Mary West reporting live from Hampshire Constabulary Police Headquarters..."

" I should tell Rose about this..." I muttered.

I placed my bowl of crisps down on the sofa, I got up from the sofa and made my way to the kitchen. I got a bottle of milk from the fridge and poured myself a glass of milk. I watched Rose for a moment as she put a box of pasta in the cupboard above the strove, I put the milk back in the fridge and picked my glass up from the kitchen counter side.

" Rose, is it true that two people from Martyr Worthy have been found dead?" I asked.

" Now where did you hear a thing like that?" She asked and turned around to face me as placed her hands on her hips. " Have you been watching the evening news again? I've told you before not to watch the 6 o'clock news, it's not suitable for young children..."

" Oh no I didn't watch the 6 o'clock, there was a special news report between my cartoons..." I replied, I watched Rose walk past me and I followed after her as she stopped at the back door of the kitchen. " The Deputy Commissioner said that they're after a serial killer, can I sleep in your bedroom tonight?"

" Really?" She asked quietly.

" Yeah, is it true?" I answered as I watched her lock and bolt the back door. " I'm kind of sacred, what if the serial killer comes here and tries to get us! I mean, we're in the middle of nowhere, we have no neighbours or a guard dog or a car! We are perfect victims, no one would know if anything happened to us!"

" Oh Elizabeth, don't be silly!" She smiled. " I won't let anything happen to you well you're in my care, I promised your Aunt that you would be well looked after well she was away recovering. Yes something bad as happened to those two poor souls in Martyr Worthy, the polices are working very hard to bring whoever did those terrible things to justice. But I reassure you that you're be safe here with me, no one will get you..."

" But the Deputy Commissioner said that the victims were connected to an old murder case that happened in a town called Stafford back in 1992!" I said as I bit at my bottom lip and watched her walk back into the kitchen. " The Deputy Commissioner also said that the serial killer was thought to be The Midnight Slasher. I've heard A mention that name to me before, he said that his family were murdered by him! Do you think I should ring A and tell him about it?"

" The Deputy Commissioner said that?" She asked." I'm sure you're just mistaken my dear, you must have misheard what the Deputy Commissioner was saying..."

" But that's what he said!" I replied, I walked back into the kitchen and took a sip of my milk. " Do you think I should ring Watari instead? He his A's guardian after all, he should know about this..."

" I'm sure Mr Wammy knows this already, so don't you going worrying about it my love..." She said as she closed the kitchen window. " Now let's not think about it, let's have our dinner in peace and then we're have a nice game of cards in the living room. I'll even make us both some hot chocolate with whipped cream and rainbow sprinkles on top. Sounds like a good evening, right?"

" I guess, but can I sleep in your bedroom still?" I asked. " I can use my sleeping bag, I'm a really quiet sleeper and I promise I won't wake you up!"

" Okay my dear, I guess it won't hurt for you to sleep in my bedroom for just one night..." She replied.

I watched Rose walk over to me, she placed her hands on my shoulders and softy kissed my forehead. I gave her a small smile as I watched her walk over to the strove, maybe I shouldn't worry about what the reporter or the Deputy Commissioner said and enjoy the rest of the evening with Rose. But it still doesn't stop me worrying about A, I need to know that he's okay. I placed my glass of milk down on the kitchen table, I walked over to Rose and tugged at the back of her apron.

" Can I still ring A though, I want to make sure he's okay..." I pouted." Please Rose, I will love you forever and make you a nice cup of tea in the morning!"

" Fine then!" She chuckled and turned around to face me. " Make it a quick call, do you know Mr Wammy's direct number?

" Yes, I've rang it many times for my Aunt Thora..." I replied.

" You've got 5 minutes, so I'd hurry..." She smiled.

I quickly ran out of the kitchen into the hall where the phone was kept, I picked the phone's receiver up and dialed Watari's personal office number. I listened to it ringing out, I twirled the curly phone wire around my finger until I heard the phone on the other end click.

" Hello..." I heard unknown male's voice say from the other end of the phone." May I ask who is calling?"

" Hello, is Mr Wammy there?" I asked. " I would like to talk to him please, if not could I please talk to a boy called A..."

" May I ask who is calling?" He asked.

" My name is Elizabeth, I'm best friends with A..." I smiled.

" I see, I believe you have no authority to be calling this number..." He replied. " May I ask what is your business with Alternative?"

" I want to make sure he's okay, I heard some stuff on the news this evening that made me worry about him..." I replied as I bit at my bottom lip. " Can I speak to Watari instead please? He knows who I am..."

" Watari is busy pouring my tea at this very moment, are you student?" He asked.

" No, I live in cottage not far from The Wammy House with my Aunt and her housekeeper..." I replied, I sat down on a little stool by the end table that the phone was kept on. " I've visited the orphanage many times though, my Great Aunt Thora invests a lot of her money in charities for children including The Wammy House. Maybe you have heard of her or met her at some point..."

" I see, I am afraid that you will have to call back in the morning..." He said with a emotionless tone in his voice. " This is not a good moment, I have no time for idle conversations with a young girl. I am in the middle of something in important with A and Watari..."

I frowned slightly as I heard the phone go dead on the other end, did he just hang up on me? I put the phone's receiver down and deeply sighed to myself. I got up from the stool and walked slowly back to the kitchen, I wonder who that rude person was on the other end of the phone?


	9. Letter

**Hey, Nukia here!**

**This fanfiction is a side story to Beyond This Love.**

**I wrote this chapter last week sometime, but I've been too busy to post it up. I always find that I can write a chapter quicker when it's shorter. I think I'm going to concentrate on this fanfiction for a while, I will get back to Beyond This Love at some point. I just want to finish this one first, then the rest will hopefully be easy and I hope people are enjoying this because I've got no idea if people are reading this story anymore. I'm going to be busy for the next two weeks, so I'll try my best with updating. **

**But thank you for the reviews ( even if there is just 6 ), favorites and the alerts! Also to the unknown people who read my fanfictions, I promise it will pick up at some point! If you don't like it, then don't read it.**

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter 9!<strong>

It had been 5 days since I saw the emergency news report on the television about the body being found in Martyr Worthy, it was still all over the news and on the front page of the Winchester's local newspaper the Hampshire Chronicle. I took a peek at one of the newspapers when Rose wasn't looking, the victims were both under the age of 16 and female. Their names hadn't been given out yet, but the newspaper's articles described the murder scenes as gruesome.

I managed to get in touched with A, he told me that he his fine and it was his mentor who was rude to me on the telephone. He didn't tell me his mentor's name though, he said it wasn't important and that I shouldn't worry about him because he his safe at The Wammy House with Watari. Mr Wammy had visited us too, he got someone to install security lights in the front and back garden of the cottage, panic buttons in the bedrooms and new bolts on the cottage's doors on the behalf of my Aunt Thora. She as decided to stay at the health retreat for a while longer, she doesn't want to return back home to all of the horrible events that are happening in Winchester right now.

I closed my book and glanced over at the wall clock above the fireplace, it was only 8:27pm and I was really bored. I haven't been allowed to go outside much because Rose won't let me, I got up from the sofa and placed my book down on the coffee table. I left the living room and made my way upstairs to my bedroom. I guess I should get ready for bed, there is nothing else to do around here until the morning. I got washed, brushed my teeth and got changed into my nightie. I went to see Rose in the kitchen before I went to my bedroom for the night, she gave me a glass of water and told me to bolt my bedroom door.

" Remember to lock your bedroom window too, it's better safe than sorry so my old Mum use to say..." She said as she smiled at down at me. " Sweet dreams my dear! I'll knock three times on your bedroom door when it's morning, then we're have omelettes for breakfast. How does that sound?"

" That sounds really good!" I smiled.

" Now go and get yourself off to bed, I've got to lock up the cottage now..." She smiled.

" Okay Rose, would you like me to bolt the front door for you?" I asked. " I'll be walking right past the front door anyway before I go upstairs, it will be one less job for you to worry about..."

" Okay my love, but I will double-check it before I turn in for the night..." She replied and walked over to the kitchen window. " Goodnight, sweet dreams and remember not to read any of those scary books A gave you..."

" Okay..." I giggled.

I watched her check the window and then draw the yellow curtains, she's been on edge for the last few days. I don't blame her though, I'm kind of frightened too. I left the kitchen and bolted the front door, at least we're safe inside the cottage. There's also bolts on the living room door and the kitchen door, no one was getting in or out of the cottage. I said goodnight to Rose and quickly made my way to my bedroom, I can't wait till it's morning.

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><p>It was now 10:45pm, I wasn't tired yet and decided to do some drawing well listening to The Scatman song on my pink coloured Walkman. I had switched my bedroom light off and turned my bedside table's lamp on, this way Rose wouldn't know I was still awake. I removed both of my earphones from my ears, I picked my yellow pencil crayon up from my pillow and coloured part of a moon in on my drawing. I sighed deeply as the tip of my pencil broke, I got up from my bed and walked over to my desk. I opened the draw and took my pencil sharper from it.<p>

" Bada bwi ba ba bada bo, baba ba da bo, bwi ba ba ba do..." I sang quietly to myself as I sharpened my pencil crayon over my dressing table's draw and danced on the spot. " Bada bwi ba ba bada bo..."

I put my sharpener back in my draw when I had finished, I smiled slightly to myself as I spotted a small black walkie-talkie that A had given to me a few months ago in the back of my draw. I wonder if it still works? I took it from my dresser draw, I walked back over to my bed and sat down on it. I switched the walkie-talkie on as I lay back on my bed, it was a really expensive looking walkie-talkie. A had told me that he had it specially made by one of the kids at the orphanage named Q, he also told me that it works like a telephone and that he would always keep it on charge in is bedroom on a special battery machine invention. I pressed the blue button on the side of the walkie-talkie and put the speaker part of it near my mouth.

" A, are you there? " I whispered into the speaker. " It's me, SJ. I'm bored and want to talk, over..."

I giggled slightly when I heard some rustling sounds coming from the walkie-talkie, I put my pencil crayon to my lips and deeply sighed to myself. I got up from my bed and walked over to the window, I wonder if A is awake? It sounds like his walkie-talkie is switched on at his end though, maybe he's asleep or not in his room. I drew one of my curtain back and took a look up at the night sky through my window, it was a beautiful night. The sky was clear, the stars were shining and the fields behind the cottage were still. I looked down at my walkie-talkie in my hand when I hear a muffled voice come through the speaker, I pressed the button on it again and held it towards my mouth.

" Hello A, do you have a bad throat?" I asked quietly and rested my hand on the window sill. " You don't have to talk if your throat is sore, are you ill?"

" Panem nostrum cotidianum da nobis hodie, et dimitte nobis debita nostra..." Replied a croaky male's voice in a low calm tone from the other end of the walkie-talkie. " Sicut et nos dimittimus debitoribus nostris; et ne nos inducas in tentationem..."

" It sounds like you've got a frog in your throat, are you going to croak?" I asked with a giggle.

" Mhm..." I heard the voice say. " Rana, letum..."

" Are you speaking in tongues?" I asked." I think you should go back to bed, you sound terrible. Maybe I could come and visit you if Rose will allow it, I could make you some soup or chocolate peanut brownies. I think Rose would let me cook something for you if you're ill, she taught me how to make tomato and bacon soup last week. Well, I didn't chop the tomatoes because she won't let me use knifes yet..."

" Sssssh..." Replied the voice in a gently tone.

" Sssh to you too!" I smiled, I partly drew the window's curtain and walked back over to my bed." I should go now, I need to put my drawing stuff away before I go to sleep. I'll give you a ring later, get better soon and take plenty of bed rest!"

" Sed libera nos a malo. Amen..." I heard the voice say before the walkie-talkie at the other end got switched off.

I switched the walkie-talkie off and placed it down on my bedside table, that was kind of weird. I mean, I've known A since I was 8 years old and he's never spoken to me like that before. I wonder if he's okay? I don't even understand what he was saying, he must have been talking in tongues or he's got a really bad fever.

I gathered up all of my drawing stuff up from my bed, I put them away and climbed into my bed. I covered myself up with my pink blankets and quickly looked over at the bedroom window when I saw a flash come from outside. I wonder what that was? Maybe there is a thunderstorm is coming, I sighed to myself as I lay back in my bed and put my hands behind my head. I looked over at my window again as I saw another flash come from outside, I closed my eyes and covered my head up with my blankets. I hate thunderstorms!

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><p>I was awoken by Rose knocking on my bedroom door, I pulled my blankets off me and jumped out of my Bed. I drew my bedroom's curtains back and shielded my eyes as the morning's sunlight entered my room, I hate the sunlight sometimes first thing in the morning. I grabbed my yellow house coat from the back of the door, I put it on and unlocked my bedroom door. I was greeted by Rose when I opened my bedroom's door, she gave me a letter and told me that breakfast would be on the table in 20 minutes. I gave her a nod before I walked back in my room, I climbed back on my bed and carefully opened the small white envelope.<p>

" I wonder who it's from?" I asked myself with a smile. " Maybe it's from Bella, I've not heard from her for a while..."

I took the folded up letter from the envelope, I frowned slightly as a few photographs fell out of it onto my bed. I picked one of the photographs up from my bed and gasped, it was photo of the cottage. I quickly looked through the other photographs and bit at my bottom lip when I saw that one photos had me looking out of my bedroom window in it, I wonder who as took them? There was a photo of the front door of the cottage, the side alleyway that runs along the side of the cottage where I keep my bike and the back garden. I opened up the letter, I tilted my head as I tried to read the writing. I don't think it's English, the only word I understand in it was amen which is normally used after people say their preys.

" Elizabeth!" I heard Rose call from downstairs. " Your Aunt is on the phone, she wishes to speak to you!"

" Okay Rose, I will be down in a moment!" I yelled.

" Now Elizabeth, you know very well that your moments turn into minutes!" I heard her call from downstairs. " Do you want any bacon with your omelette?!"

" Sure, that sounds good!" I replied.

I quickly put the letter and photographs back in the envelope, I wonder who took these photographs? Maybe I should tell Rose about them, but then she may worry with all of The Midnight Slasher business happening in Winchester right now. I guess there is only one person I would be able to tell about these photographs, I really need to ring A if Rose will allow me to. I stuffed the envelope under my pillow in my bed, I grabbed my empty glass from my bedside table and quickly left my bedroom.


	10. The Envelope Under The Bed

**Hey, Nukia here!**

**This fanfiction is a side story to Beyond This Love.**

**I don't know if any of my old readers are still reading any of my rewrites anymore, but I am going to tell you what happened in the Midnight Slasher case in the next few chapters in The Wammy House Memories. I never finished The Alternative Story, but I'm going to tie it in with this fanfiction because I enjoyed writing A's story. I just wanted to finish that case, it comes to a terrifying end and L maybe in my next chapter. **

**But thank you for the reviews ( even if there is just 7 ), favorites and the alerts! Also to the unknown people who read my fanfictions, I promise it will pick up at some point! If you don't like it, then don't read it.**

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter 10!<strong>

I quietly closed my bedroom door behind me, my Aunt Thora had just returned from the health retreat in the Peak District 5 days ago. I hadn't told anyone about the letter or photographs either, I didn't want anyone to worry about it and even worse I wasn't allowed to visit A because Rose said it was to dangerous for me to ride my bike to The Wammy House right now. I sighed to myself as I walked down the stairs, I jumped from the last step and opened the living room's door. I walked into the living room, I picked the television remote up from the coffee table and switched the television on. I sat down on the sofa and curled my legs under myself as I made myself comfortable.

" You are finally out of your nightwear, I see..." I heard my Aunt Thora say from the doorway of the living room. " It's not appropriate for a young lady to be sitting around in her nightwear in the afternoon, people will start thinking that you are indolent..."

I turned my full attention to my Aunt standing in the doorway of the living room, she was leaning on her wooden walking stick with a look of concern on her face. I've never seen my Aunt looking concerned before in all the years I've lived with her, I switched the television off and got up from the sofa with a slight smile on my face.

" What does indolent mean?" I asked.

" Another meaning for the word indolent is lazy..." She replied.

" Oh, I will remember that for future reference then..." I sighed.

" Elizabeth, I need to talk with you about those photographs and that letter my housekeeper Rose found under your bed not long ago when she was hoovering your bedroom. When did you receive this letter?" She asked.

" I'm not sure what letter you are talking about Aunt Thora, I receive the odd letter from my Mother's old friend Bella who lives in Oxford..." I replied, I placed the television remote down on the coffee table and walked over to her. " She did send me some photographs of my Mother and Grandmother's grave about 2 months ago, she's been taking very good care of them over the years. Is that the letter you are speaking of?"

" Elizabeth, do not take me for an idiot!" She said with a hint of annoyance in her voice. " I have seen the photographs that were in the envelope under your bed, it is of great urgency that you tell me when you received this letter. Mr Wammy is coming to collect the letter and those photographs this evening, he his very interested in the text of the hand written letter..."

" Mr Wammy is interested in the letter's text?" I asked as I stopped in front of my Aunt and looked up at her. " Why? What interest does it have for him? It's just some photographs of the cottage, I know the letter is strange though. Does he have any clues about who took those photographs and sent that letter?"

" Whom, not who..." She sighed. " Really Elizabeth, those elocution lessons I pay for you to have are wasted on you!"

" I'm sorry Aunt Thora, I will try harder with my elocution lesson..." I smiled slightly and tucked some of my hair behind my ear. " But does Mr Wammy have any clues is what I am asking?"

" I can not say at this very moment, that information as been withheld from me until he as decided what his answer shall be..." She replied. " Your well being is a very important priority to me, your are my only living relative and that is exceedingly precious to me. Do you understand what I am trying to tell to you?"

" Yes I understand, I think..." I replied.

I watched my Aunt walk past me, she sat down on her favorite old brown coloured Victorian leather sofa chair by a fancy wooden side table and rested her walking stick against the side of the chair. I put my hands behind and walked over to her, I wonder if she's going to scold me for not telling her about the letter?

" Aunt Thora, am I in trouble?" I asked.

" I am not sure just yet, but it was very silly to keep something like this from me..." She replied as she gently pulled my hand from behind my back and rested her other hand on top of it. " My dear Elizabeth, I know over the years I have not gotten to know you better. I believe I have missed out on getting to know my Great Niece which saddens me since you have lived with me since the age of 8 years, I would like to spend some time with you and get to find out your interests. Would you allow me to spend at least one day week doing some form of activity with you?"

"Of course, I would like that!" I smiled.

" Very good, can I schedule you in for next Tuesday?" She asked.

" Yes, I am free each day since it's the summer holidays..." I replied, I gave Rose a smile as she places a cup of tea down on a drink coaster on the side table next to the sofa chair and turned my attention back to my Aunt. "Maybe you could tell me about my Grandmother, I was very young when she passed away..."

" Yes, I could tell you many stories about my dearly departed Sister Annabella..." She smiled and let got of my hand. " Now if you would please excuse me, I would like to read my newspaper in silence. You may go and continue with your daily activities until afternoon lunch, I believe you have an English paper you need to complete before the end of the summer break. Am I right?"

" Yes, you're right Aunt Thora..." I answered.

" Very good, I will take tea with you this evening at 7pm..." She said as she took her newspaper from the wooden magazine rack and opened it. " Do not be late, I disapprove of tardiness..."

" Of course Aunt Thora, I shall see you for tea at 7pm!" I smiled

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><p>I picked my cracker with cheese on it up from my plate, I took a small bite of it and looked over at Rose as she put cheese pie into the oven. It had just turned 3:48pm, I was having my afternoon lunch like I do each day before I have my dinner. I looked over at kitchen's doorway when I heard the telephone ring from the hallway, Rose quickly left the kitchen to answer the phone for the sixth time today. I'm not sure who keeps calling, but my Aunt Thora keeps talking to whoever it was on the phone. I placed my cracker down on my plate as I pick my pen up from the table, I turned my attention to my English paper and continued to write my paper.<p>

" I'm sick and tired of answering the phone, I may see if I get a cordless telephone..." I heard Rose complaining. " It doesn't do your Aunt much good with her getting up from her chair every hour to speak to the caller, she is meant to be resting..."

" Who keeps ringing?" I asked.

" Mr Wammy, he keeps wanting to talk with your Aunt..." She replied.

" About what?" I asked, I looked over my shoulder at Rose and watched her take the bin-bag out of the dustbin . " Is it about those photographs and the letter? Did he work out who they were from yet? Will he want to talk to me about them? Will I have to have a interview with him? Do you think I will be able to visit The Wammy House?"

" To many questions..." She replied with a chuckle.

" Sorry, but what did he want and say?" I asked.

" I'm not really sure, you will have to speak with your Aunt about it when you have evening tea with her at 7pm..." She replied. " Elizabeth, Will you get my shoes for me please? They're by the back door, I was gardening earlier and had to wear my welly boots because it rained this morning. Also there is another bag of rubbish at the back door, be a dear and get that for me too..."

" But I'm in the middle of writing about how Helmet discovered that his father was poisoned by his Uncle, I have to write the reason why he did it..." I replied and placed my pen down on my notebook. " Do you want me to take the rubbish out for you instead?"

" Elizabeth my dear, you know very well that I can't let you do that even if it's the most simple of tasks..." She sighed and tied the rubbish bag up with a piece of string. " It's not safe for young girls to be out by themselves in these times, I will not allow it and neither will your Aunt..."

" But it's just beyond the gate, I'm perfectly safe taking the rubbish out for you and it still light out..." I sighed. " I'm bored Rose, I just wanted to get some fresh air even if that means just taking the rubbish out to the bin!"

" Elizabeth, you know your Aunt would dislike that idea..." She smiled.

" Oh come on Rose, I thought you were cool!" I giggled. " I'll get your shoes for you and the other bag of rubbish, but you have to let me walk with you to put the rubbish out. Do we have a deal?"

" Fine, I guess it won't hurt if you walk me to the gate..." She replied.

" Cool, I'll get your shoes for you then!" I smiled.

I quickly got up from my chair at the kitchen table, I ran to the back door to get Rose's shoes and the other bag of rubbish. I quickly grabbed them from the back door, I closed the partly open back door and locked it. I returned to the kitchen and placed her shoes down by her feet, I ran out of the kitchen with the rubbish bag into the hall and opened the front door of the cottage. I inhaled the fresh air as I stepped through the doorway, it was lovely sunny day with the smell of wet grass lingering in the air still from the downpour a few hours ago. I walked slowly down the pathway, I opened the gate at the end of the pathway and walked through the gateway.

" Wait up there my love!" I heard Rose call. " No rushing off!"

" Sorry Rose!" I smiled.

I took the lid from the bin and glance both ways down the road that runs past the cottage, it really was quiet where we lived. I placed the rubbish bag down by the bin, I tutted to myself when I saw a few bits of rubbish on the grass behind the bin and peeped into the bin. I tilted my head when something shiny caught my attention, I wonder what that is in the bin? I bent forward slightly and saw a golden necklace in the bin with a small gold cross hanging from the chain. I quickly took it from the bin and I put my hand behind my back as I heard the gate open.

" What a mess! I bet some foxes have been in the bin again, they are getting to be quite a nuisance these days!" She sighed.

" I thought that too, do you think I could go fox watching one night?" I asked.

" Maybe some other time when it's safer, I better get this mess cleaned up..." She replied and put the bin-bag in the bin." Would you mind holding the bin lid for a bit long? It will be much easier that way well I tidy up..."

" Sure!" I smiled.

I watched Rose quickly pick up all the rubbish from the grass, she put all of it in the bin and picked the other bin-bag up from next to the bin.

" Come on my love, let's get back inside before my pie burns..." She said with a smile." You can help me to make a salad to go with it, I will even let you cut the tomatoes for me..."

" Okay, but I don't like tomatoes..." I laughed and watched her put the other bin-bag in the bin. " But I will cut them for you, I want to learn more about cooking. Will you teach me how to make soup one day?"

" Sure, let's get back inside and wash our hands..." She replied, she looked back at the cottage and sighed when she heard the telephone ringing again. " Damn it, not again! Excuse my French Elizabeth, but I am really getting tired of answering that bloody telephone today..."

" I'll get it for you!" I smiled.

" Just this once, I will be along in a few minutes to take the call from you..." She smiled and took the bin's lid from my hand. " Be quick, it could be important..."

" Okay!"I nodded.

I stuffed the necklace in the back pocket of my jeans and quickly hurried back down the pathway that led to the front door of the cottage. I ran through the doorway and grabbed the receiver from the phone. I rested the phone's receiver against my ear and twirled the telephone's wire around my finger, finally I'll get to speak to Mr Wammy.

" Hello, this is the Havisham residence..." I said as I picked a pen up from a small green pad that was kept next to the phone." This Elizabeth Mayhem speaking, may I ask who you would like to speak to?"

" Hello Elizabeth, this is Watari..." He answered. " May I speak with your Aunt? This is very important, I must speak with her immediately..."

" Hello Watari, are you the one who as been calling all day?" I asked.

" Yes Elizabeth, that was me..." He replied with a laugh." But I would like to speak with your Aunt, I afraid it about those photographs and the letter you received. Seeing as your Aunt is your legal guardian everything I need to say as to be directly to her my dear..."

" Okay Watari, but can I ask you something first?" I asked and sat down on the stool next to the end table the telephone was kept on." Am I in trouble for hiding those photographs and letter? Do you have any clues on who sent them?"

" Of course not, you can ease your mind my dear..." He replied." You are not in trouble, so don't you worry..."

" That's good to know, but you've not answered my question about who sent them yet..." I sighed and placed the pen back down in the pad. " Can I speak with A please?"

" Not right now my dear, A is very busy with his studies..." He replied. " But I will have to ask you some questions, it's very important that I speak to you today. I suggest that you get your Aunt for me, you may have to come and spend the night at The Wammy House for questioning..."

" Really?" I asked as I got up from the stool. " Why? I've done nothing bad, I swear I've been good! My Aunt use tell me when I was young that if I misbehaved I would end up getting sent to The Wammy House, I really have been good for the last few weeks!"

" Elizabeth!" I heard my Aunt yell from the living room doorway. " What have I told you about answering the telephone without permission? Where is Rose? I thought she was meant to be watching you in the kitchen!"

" I-i-it's for you Aunt Thora!" I replied with stutter. " It's Mr Wammy, he needs to speak with you right a way!"

I quickly placed the phone's receiver down on the pad, I glanced at Rose as she closed the cottage's front door behind her and watched my Aunt pick up the receiver of the phone. I bit at my bottom lip as I watched my Aunt speaking to Watari on the phone, she gave me a concerned looked and held the phone's receiver to her chest.

" Elizabeth, pack an over night bag immediately!" She said. " You will be spending the next 2 nights at The Wammy House, you will be under the care of Mr Wammy and Mr Roger Ruvie. Do you understand?"

" But why do I have t stay there?" I asked. " What's going on?"

" Elizabeth, please don't be difficult and do as you are told!" She frowned

" Yes Aunt Thora..." I said quietly.

" Rose, if you would please help Elizabeth pack an over night bag..." She said and rested the phone's receiver back against her ear. " Mr Wammy is going to collect her at 8pm, she will need all of the essentials and her summer school lesson plan. Do you understand?"

" Oh course Miss Havisham, I will take her to her bedroom right away and back her an over night bag before dinner..." I heard Rose reply as rested her hand on my shoulder and gave me a smile. " Come along my dear, there is nothing to worry about. See it as a little sleepover, I bet you will make some new friends too at the orphanage..."

" Okay..." I nodded.


	11. I Don't Understand

**Hey, Nukia here!**

**This fanfiction is a side story to Beyond This Love.**

**I don't know if any of my old readers are reading my rewrites anymore, but I am going to tell you what happened in the Midnight Slasher case in The Wammy House Memories in the next few chapters. I never finished The Alternative Story, but I'm going to tie it in with this fanfiction because I enjoyed writing A's story. **

**But thank you for the reviews ( even if there is just 8 ), favorites and the alerts! Also to the unknown people who read my fanfictions, I promise it will pick up at some point! If you don't like it, then don't read it.**

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter 11!<strong>

Watari had picked me up from my Great Aunt Thora's cottage just before 8pm, he drove me straight to the orphanage and showed me which student bedroom I would be staying in for the next two days. The room I'll be staying in is on the second floor of The Wammy House, it was pretty small bedroom with the basic furniture each students would need well they lived at the orphanage. I hung my clothes up in the room's wardrobe, I put my backpack under the bed and went to have a quick wash in the bathroom. I put my nightie on, brushed my teeth and switched the light off in the bathroom.

" SJ!" I heard someone call from outside of the bedroom's door as they gently knocked on it. " Open up, it's A!"

" One moment!" I replied." I'm not decent!"

I grabbed my yellow house coat from the bed, I quickly put it on as I walked towards the door and stopped in front of the it. I unlocked the door, I opened it wide and gave A a big smile as he quickly barged pasted me into the bedroom. I watched him walk over to the bed, he got onto his knees and took a brown paper folder from underneath the bed.

" What are you doing?" I asked.

" I'm just collecting some of my property, I'll be gone in about two seconds..." He replied and got up from the floor. " We can hangout tomorrow at breakfast, I'm afraid Backup will be there though and the other students of The Wammy House. You won't mind that though, right?"

" I guess not, but I don't want to sit near Backup..." I answered, I tucked some of my hair behind my ear as leant back against the door frame and sighed deeply. " I've not seen him since I delivered a package on the behalf of my Aunt Thora, he was being disgusting and dissecting worms!"

" You're get use to him, just do what I do and pretend he's not there..." He smiled.

" Okay, I'll try your method the next time I see him..." I giggled.

" Do you mind if I use your bathroom?" He asked and put the folder under his arm. " I need to pee, I don't think I'll make it make to my bedroom in time..."

" Yeah, I guess that's okay..." I answered with a laugh. " Just hurry up, I'm tired and ready for bed..."

I watched A quickly disappear into the bathroom, I quietly closed the room's door and ran over to the bed. I jumped onto it and stretched out on it as I yawned loudly, I rolled over onto my side and pulled my knees to my chest. I heard the chain flush in the bathroom, I sat up on the bed and tucked some of my hair behind my ear as A walked out of the bathroom.

" Don't go in there until the morning, it's radioactive in there right now..." He chuckled and closed the bathroom's door behind him. " I better get going, I've got to take this file to Watari's office before I retire to my room. My bedroom is just down the corridor though if you need me, I'll most probably be awake until the early hours studying or reading or just staring at the ceiling like I do most night..."

" A, may I ask what's in that folder under your arm?" I asked.

" My folder?" He asked.

" Yes, I mean what was it doing in this room?" I asked and placed my feet down on the floor." Even more, what's in it?"

" Oh this folder!" He replied, he took his folder from under his arm and smiled. " It's nothing important, just some newspaper clippings I've collected over the years..."

" Just newspaper clippings?" I asked.

" Yeah, nothing else in this folder besides newspaper clippings and maybe some study notes for science..." He replied. " Anyway, I'll come by in the morning and knock on for you with Backup. Remember, breakfast starts at 8:30am and finishes at 9:30am. No oversleeping or you'll have to go without until lunch, did you get all of that?"

" Yes, I've got it!" I replied with a smile " I'll set my alarm clock for 7am just before I go to sleep, you have my word on it this time..."

" Alright, I'll see you in the morning then..." He smiled.

I watched A walk over to the bedroom door, I quickly got up from the bed and ran over to him. I gently took hold of his arm, I pulled him away from the door and sighed. I closed the door, I led him towards the bed and smiled at him.

" We need to talk before you go..." I said.

" About what?" He asked.

" The Midnight Slasher, I need to ask you about him..." I answered quietly and let go of his arm as I sat back down on the bed. " He's the person who took your Mum and your Sister away from you, am I right?"

" You still remember that after all of these years?" He asked quietly.

" Yes, I remember most things you tell me about your past..." I replied with a nod. " He's the person who killed those young girls in Martyr Worthy, am I right about that too?"

" I can't answer that, I'm not really sure myself just yet..." He replied as he ran his fingers through his blonde hair. " But you'll be the first person I'll tell when I know something, okay?"

" A, I know when you're hiding things from me..." I smiled slightly. " You always run your fingers through your hair when you're lying, you can tell me. I swear I will not tell anyone, we're best friends right?"

" Oh course we're best friends! we're best friends until the end of time, I just don't know yet..." He replied.

" You're still lying, come on and tell me the truth!" I smiled.

" Alright bossy boots! We're not really sure yet, the person could be a copycat serial killer..." He answered. " It says in criminal sicastis reports that it's been shown that most of the people who mimic crimes mostly likely have seen them in the media. In most cases they have earlier criminal records, prior severe mental health problems or histories of violence suggesting that the effect of the media is indirect rather than direct. We believe that the person maybe a nut job or an obsessive criminal searcher, in this case we cannot rule out that it maybe the real The Midnight Slasher..."

" Who is this we you mention?" I asked.

" Oh, I mean me and Watari..." He replied as he sat down next to me no the bed. " You know I can't tell you everything that is going on right now, but I can tell you just this one thing. You're safe here at The Wammy House with us, we've got a level four security system running through this old building which is the highest form of security technology you could wish for at this very moment..."

" That's very reassuring, but why have I been brought here?" I asked.

" Didn't Watari tell you anything?" He asked as he got up from the bed. " Those photographs and the letter you got posted to your cottage are like the ones the two female victims received a few days before they were murdered in Martyr Worthy. Do you understand why you're here now?"

" You mean I'm in danger?!" I gasped, I jumped up from the bed and covered up my ears. " I don't want to die, I'm to young to die! I want to live, I want to go to college and be makeup artist to the stars when I'm older!"

" You want to be makeup artist to the stars when you're older?" He asked with a slight chuckle." Are you serious?"

" It's not funny at all!" I frowned.

" Aright, it's not funny..." He sighed. "But you're not going to die, well not today anyway. You're safe here like I said before with us, we'll catch this guy and he'll get justice like all the other bad guys L as put behind bars before him. So don't you worry about anything, okay?"

" Who is L?" I asked.

" Oopsies, I didn't mean to say that!" He replied, he quickly walked over to the bedroom's door and opened it wide. " SJ, just get some sleep. I'll come and walk you to the dinner hall before you see Watari, I've kind of said too much at this point..."

" You're not right for an 11 year old boy, why can't you like cars and football instead of crime?" I asked and uncovered my ears. " How do you expect me to sleep after what you have told me?"

" I'll be 12 years old in two months time, I'm not really a fan of football or cars..." He replied as he looked over his shoulder at me and gave me a smile. " I've got a game you can play until you fall asleep, do you what to borrow it?"

" I don't want to play any silly games, I want some answers!" I replied.

" Alright, you can get your answers in the morning from Watari..." He said as he took a rubik's cube from his jean pocket and placed it down on the floor. " I'll leave it here anyway in case you change your mind, I'll see you in the morning for breakfast..."

" Don't go yet!" I frowned. " You have not explained wha..."

" Goodnight SJ!" He interrupted.

" A!" I yelled.

" Goodnight, sleep tight!" He said quickly.

I watched A close the bedroom's door quickly behind him, I let out a frustrated sound and stomped my foot on the floor. He can be so thoughtless at time, but I know he doesn't mean to do it. I just want to know what is going on, am I The Midnight Slashers next victim? I let my arms fall to my sides, I looked over at the rubik's cube he left on the floor and walked over to it. I picked it up from the floor, I walked back over to the bed and climbed into it. I covered myself up, I took a look a the rubik's cube and turned one of the rotating cube faces of the puzzle.

" Why do boys have to be so stupid?" I asked myself.

* * *

><p>I jumped up in the bed when I heard my alarm clock going off, it was 7am and it was time to get up. I yawned as I crawled over to the window next to the bed, I drew back the green coloured curtains and opened the window wide. It was a beautiful morning, the birds were sing and the sun was shining bright in the morning sky. I got out of bed, I hurried to the bathroom and got washed. I picked my dirty clothes up from the bathroom floor that I left in there last night, I carried them over to the bed and stopped when I put my hand in my jean's pocket. I bit at my bottom lip as I took the necklace with the golden cross hanging from the chain out of my pocket, I threw my dirty clothes on the bed and put the necklace on.<p>

" Finders keepers I guess!" I smiled.

I quickly got changed into my long-sleeved blue dress, I put my black buckled shoes on and tied my hair up into a ponytail. I put my dirty clothes into my backpack, I zipped it up and put it back under the bed. It wasn't long before I heard a knock on door, I opened the it and was greeted by A with a tray full of food in his hands.

" Room service!" He smiled, he walked into the bedroom and placed the tray down on the dressing table. " I thought I would bring breakfast to you, the dinner hall is quite crowded right now..."

" Where's Backup?" I asked. " I thought he would be joining us for breakfast, did he change his mind?"

" He's in Isolation for tipping a jar of strawberry jam over a kid's head cause he called him a freak, it was pretty funny though..." He replied with a chuckle. " Well, not for the kid of course. You should eat quickly, Watari want's to see you in his office by 8:30am..."

" Okay..." I nodded.

I walked over to the dressing table and took a look at the breakfast foods on the tray. It was manly sugar related foods like jelly with marshmallows or fruit in it, candy apples, bananas, currant bread, chocolate mousse, cartons of fruit juice, bottles of chocolate milkshakes, chocolate chip muffins and cookies with cream. I decided to have a pot of jelly with pineapple chunks in it, I grabbed a spoon from the tray and sat down on the floor by the dressing table.

" Is that all you're having for breakfast?" He asked.

" Yes, I don't really eat sweet foods for breakfast..." I replied and ripped the lid from the jelly pot. " Don't you serve porridge or toast at The Wammy House for breakfast?"

" Sometimes we do, but that's rare seeing as food with fiber in it wouldn't fuel our brains better that sugary based foods..." He answered as he picked the tray up from the dressing table and placed it down in front of me. " Help yourself to more, there's plenty left. You'll need all the sugar you can get today, once my mentor starts asking you questions he'll not stop unless it's to take a sip of his tea..."

" Watari is your mentor, right?" I asked.

" I guess he his in a way, but you'll be questioned by someone else too..." He replied and sat down on the floor next to me. " It will get clearer when I've taken you to meet him, do you mind if I help myself to some of the food? I'm kind of hungry still, all I've had today for my breakfast is marshmallow jelly and seven toffee muffins..."

" Seven toffee muffins?" I asked with a giggled, I leant forward and grabbed a chocolate chip muffin from the tray as I smiled. " Wow, that's a world record! They must be delicious if you can eat that many, but help yourself to more breakfast..."

" What's that around your neck?" I heard A ask.

" It's a necklace..." I answered as I held the muffin towards him. " Don't tell me that you've never seen a necklace before, don't they teach you stuff here about jewelry or fashion?"

" It's not that, where did you get your necklace from is what I'm asking..." He replied hastily. " It's important, I need to know now!"

" What's wrong?" I asked.

" Please SJ, where did you get your necklace from?!" He asked, he quickly got up from the floor and forcefully yanked me up from the floor by my arm." We've got to go, I need to take you to Watari right now!"

" You're hurting me!" I frowned. " Please let go of my arm!"

" Please SJ, you've got to trust me on this one..." He said as he walked me over to the bedroom door." That necklace, it was found around the two female victim's necks in Martyr Worthy. It was the same all those years ago in Stafford, it's his signature and basically his target item. You're in danger, I'm in danger!"

" I don't understand, what are you on about?" I asked.

" He's going to finish off what he's started, he wants to end his twisted game he began all those years ago..." He replied, he opened the bedroom's door and turned around to face me. " SJ, I was the only victim who managed escape his clutches when he murdered my Mum and Sister. I was meant to die with my family that night, but fate had other ideas for me. After all of these years he as come back for me, he kills because of sin!"

" I still don't understand, you're scaring me..." I said quietly.

" I need to show you something, I need you to come with me to Watari's office!" He said as his voice began to shake. " Please, I don't want to lose anymore of my family or friends. You will come with me, right?"

" Okay, I will come with you..." I answered quietly.

I placed the chocolate chip muffin back down on the tray, I took hold of A's hand and let him lead me out of the room. We walked together down the corridor, he led me into another corridor which led to a staircase. The corridors were empty, I guess most of the students were still in the dinner hall having their breakfast. We quickly made our way down two flights of stairs that led to the bottom floor, he led me into another corridor and stopped me in front of a door saying headmaster on it.

" Is this Mr Wammy's office?" I asked.

A gave me a nod, he slowly opened the door and led me into Watari's office by my hand. I took a quick look around office, it was quite stuffy with many file case folders stack around the room. I saw Watari standing by the window of the office, he looked at me over his shoulder and gave me a smile. I heard the office door close behind me, I let go of A's hand and spooned some of my jelly in my mouth.

" Good morning Elizabeth, I hope you had a pleasant nights sleep..." Smiled Watari.

" Yes, I slept quite well thank you..." I said and jumped slightly when I felt someone remove the necklace from around my neck. " Hey!"

I turned around quickly to be greeted by a tall thin looking boy, his was quite pale with round dark eyes and messy black hair. I watched him walk oddly past me, he hopped onto a chair at the desk and held my necklace between his finger tips as examined it. He was dressed in similar clothes to what Backup likes to wears, but he was wearing a white shirt instead of a black one and wore no shoes on his feet.

" It's perfectly fine my dear, do not be alarmed..." Chuckled Watari.

" Watari, have we received the coroner reports yet for the Martyr Worthy victims?" Asked the boy.

" Not yet sir, I shall ring the Winchester police department once again and inquire about the delays..." Replied Watari as he walked to the desk and picked a file case folder from it. " But until then I would like to introduce you to someone, this young lady is in my care for the next two days. She is the great-niece of my dear friend Miss Havisham, I believe she may be able to help us with our inquiries. She is the young lady I told you about who received the letter and those photographs through the post, they are very similar to the Martyr Worthy victim's letters..."

" Yes, I believe you maybe right..." Said the boy.


	12. Questioning

**Hey, Nukia here!**

**This fanfiction is a side story to Beyond This Love.**

**I don't know if any of my old readers are reading my rewrites anymore, but I am going to tell you what happened in the Midnight Slasher case in The Wammy House Memories. I never finished The Alternative Story, but I'm going to tie it in with this fanfiction because I enjoyed writing A's story. This chapter will be short, but I hope you like it and it doesn't confuse anyone too much!**

**But thank you for the reviews ( even if there is just 9 ), favorites and the alerts! Also to the unknown people who read my fanfictions, I promise it will pick up at some point! If you don't like it, then don't read it.**

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter 12!<strong>

I watched the strange boy examining my necklace, he turned his attention to me and stepped down from the chair. He walked over to me in his odd crouched walking position, he stopped in front of me and put his thumb to his lips as he held my necklace towards me. I looked over at the desk when I heard the telephone ring, I watched Watari pick up the receiver of the telephone and turned my attention back to the dark-haired boy.

" May I ask where you got this necklace from?" He asked.

" I found it well I was helping my Aunt's housekeeper put the rubbish out, it was in the bin outside of my cottage..." I replied. " I'm not sure how it got there though, it's pretty huh? Do you think I will be able to keep it?"

" It's just like the other necklaces they found on both of the female victims in Martyr Worthy, I've also got proof that they're the same make too!" I heard A say from next to me. " They're also the same kind of necklace they found on the other victims from the 1992 murders in Stafford from the first The Midnight Slasher case, do you think it's him yet or a copycat serial killer still?"

" There is a 75% chance that the original Midnight Slasher is still alive and behind the two new murders in Martyr Worthy, it as been 4 years since his last victim back in 1992..." Answered the boy as he turned his attention to A. " In 1992 ten innocent people with connections to St Chads Church were murdered in approximately 3 weeks, they all attended the Sunday evening service at the church which was then given by Father Theodore before he moved to London. Each victim had a connection through either family, friends or the church. For example, your Mother employed Bethany Summers who was the third victim of The Midnight Slasher to take care of you and your Sister well your Mother worked night shifts at the local hospital. A 19-year-old student studying a degree in childcare at Staffordshire University, the only connection I could find with her to your family was the odd babysitting she did for your Mother. A straight A grade student with no criminal record, if The Midnight Slasher murdered because of sin then what was her sin?"

" I don't know, she was always nice to me and my Sister from what I can remember..." Replied A.

" A, I need you to recall back to the night of the 15th of October 1992 ..." Said the boy. " Do you remember anything unusual taking place that night of your families untimely death?"

" I told you everything I could remember from that night, I don't want to keep reliving!" Sighed A as he held his folder towards the boy. " I want to show you something, I may have proof that it's the original serial killer. Can I at least show you what I've collected over the years about him?"

I watched as A and the boy spoke to each other, the boy actually seemed quite stubborn. I wonder how old he his? I can also see quite a likeness to Backup in his looks, I wonder if he's related to him? I spooned some more of my jelly into my mouth as I looked down at the floor, I quickly looked up when I felt someone gently tug at a piece of my fringe and bit at my bottom lip when I saw the dark-haired boy staring at me.

" Please pay attention when I'm speaking, I dislike repeating myself..." Said the boy in an emotionless tone as he stared at me and took my jelly pot from my hand. " Each victim suffered lacerations to their upper parts of their torso which led to specific amounts of blood loss which did not cause their deaths, the victim would remain conscious for over a minute as they slowly bled out. The final process of their death would be a single cut to an artery in their throat area which caused their demise, he left his signature in the form of a gold-plated crucifix necklace around each of his victim's necks..."

" How awful..." I said quietly.

" L, I have news that will gratefully please you..." I heard Watari say. " The coroner reports and the personal belonging for the Martyr Worthy victims have just arrived at the front gate of The Wammy House. Mr Ruvie will be delivering them in a few moment's time to my office, I suggest you question Elizabeth quickly before Mr Ruvie arrives at my office. I apologize if this brings your questioning to a short session, but the items may cause distress to our young guest... "

" Yes, thank you Watari..." Said L.

So this is L, this must be A's other mentor he mentioned to me by accident last night. I watched A snatch the necklace from L's hand, he rushed over to the desk and climbed up onto the chair at the desk. He opened up his folder that he got from under the bed in the room I was staying in, he took a few newspaper clippings from it and held the necklace up with one of the newspaper cutouts.

" See, they're the same design!" Said A. " Sherman Jewelry was manufactured in Canada between 1947 to 1981, I know that most of their jewelry is known as vintage now. They did sell the specific gold-plated crucifixes before they stopped manufacturing them in 1980, do you want to know how I know they're from the Sherman Jewelry collection?"

I watched L walk over to A, he placed my jelly pot down on the desk and took the newspaper clipping from his hand. He held it up in front of his face between his finger and thumb as he examined it.

" The Sherman Jewelry hallmark on the necklace's cross, they're also on the crosses from the 1992 necklaces which matches the one that SJ as been wearing and also the same as the necklace that the two victims from Martyr Worthy had around their necks too!" Said A, he held the necklace towards L and ran his fingers through his hair. " Don't you see it yet? It's him, it really is him! No information was released on the make of the necklaces back in 1992, who else would know about them but The Midnight Slasher?"

" I see..." Said L.

" Don't you believe me?" Asked A.

" A, you have brought new information to my eyes which will be useful in this case..." Replied L, he placed the newspaper clipping down on the desk and put his thumb to his lips. " However, I will not be able to decide until I have seen the belonging of the Martyr Worthy victims. I will consider what you have told me, until then may I keep your folder for side evidence to the case?"

" Yeah, that's why I showed you it..." Answered A.

" Now Elizabeth, I need to question you about the letter and photographs you received..." Said L as he looked over at me. " When did you receive the envelope containing the letter and photographs?"

" It was 5 days ago..." I replied. " My Aunt's housekeeper Rose gave it to me, it must have come in the morning post..."

" I see, did you notice anything odd about the envelope?" He asked.

" It was a normal looking envelope to me, I thought it may have been from my Mum's friend Bella back in Oxford at first..." I answered and walked over to the desk. " Can I ask what the letter said please?"

" The letter was written in Latin, but what was written does not concern you..." Replied L.

" Oh, but can I tell you something that maybe important to you?" I asked.

" If you must..." Sighed L.

" Well, the day before I got the letter in the post I used the walkie-talkie that A gave me months ago..." I said as I looked over at A. " But I think A was talking in tongues, I didn't understand what he was saying. But I understood one word he said which was Amen, that's a Latin word, am I right?"

" Yes, you are correct..." I heard L say.

" SJ, I don't own the other walkie-talkie anymore..." He replied. " It went missing over a week a go, I've not seen it since then. Whoever you were speaking to wasn't me, it couldn't have been me because I've been with L and Watari everyday this week... "

" Then who was I talking to?" I asked.

" No idea, maybe you picked up a radio frequency..." Replied A as he climbed down from the chair. " The walkie-talkie I gave you had a very high frequency, it's range could reach up to a theoretical max range of 100 miles. So basically you could have picked up a radio station or maybe airport radio frequency, it can happen sometimes with advanced radio technology..."

" I guess so..." I said quietly.

" Elizabeth, may I ask about the day before you received the letter. The date would have been the 11th of August, did you do anything out of the ordinary in your day to day routines?" I heard L ask. " Did you notice anything peculiar in the days running up to receiving the letter and photographs?"

" I can't remember what happened on the exact day, everything was normal before I got the letter..." I replied, I took my jelly pot from the desk and spooned some of the jelly onto my spoon. " It's just been me and Rose the days before the letter was delivered to my Aunt's cottage. My Aunt Thora as been ill you see, she went to stay in a health retreat in the Peak District until she felt better and then she decided to..."

" SJ, you're waffling..." Interrupted A with a chuckle.

" I'm sorry, I didn't mean to waffle on..." I sighed. " But something odd happened when I was getting ready for bed the night before I got the letter, I saw a flash of light from outside of my window. It wasn't like a lighting flash or lights on a car driving past your house, it was weird. The flash only lasted for a second, it could have been nothing or my mind playing tricks on me..."

I watched L step up onto the chair, he perched himself on the edge of the chair and took a case file folder from a pile of folders on the desk. He placed it down in front of him and opened it up as he put his thumb to his lips. He began to flick through the folder's pages, he stopped at a page and took a envelope from the folder.

" This is the envelope that was delivered to your home, it contains the photographs and the letter..." Said L. " I believe the flash of light you may have seen was from a camera, to be exact a Polaroid Impulse Camera with a pop up flash. The photographs are made from light-sensitive paper coated with chemical formula, the photographs are Polaroid framed which indicates that the photographs were from a Polaroid camera..."

" Do you think someone was outside of SJ's cottage taking photographs then?" Asked A.

" Yes, I am 85% sure that I am right about the photographs..." Replied L as he stepped down of the chair and walked over to the window. " But who took them is still the question, I believe we maybe dealing with a copycat serial killer. Yet your theory about the necklaces does bring up new evidence, I need to gather my thoughts and contemplate for a few moments..."

" A, why don't you take Elizabeth to the kitchen and get her some proper breakfast..." I heard Watari say as I spooned some of my jelly into my mouth. " I don't think jelly is suitable breakfast for her, if you ask May nicely she will make her some porridge..."

" Sure, come of SJ!" Smiled A.

" Okay..." I nodded.

I followed A out of Watari's office, we made our way to the kitchen of The Wammy House and threw my jelly pot away. We were greeted by May when we got to the kitchen, she was one of the housekeepers of the orphanage and also a relative of Mr Ruvie so A told me. She agreed to make me some porridge, she told us to take a seat at the breakfast counter of the kitchen and to help ourselves to some tea or milk well we waited. I made myself a cup of tea and sat quietly well I watched A drawing stars on his left hand.

" Backup, I know you're hiding behind the fridge. I can hear you breathing, do you have a cold still?" Smirked A, he placed his pen down on the counter and turned around on his chair. " What are you up to? You better not be removing the fridge's fan again or Watari will scold you. What do you need all of those fridge fans for anyway?"

" It's none of your business Alternative, why don't you continue with your little tea party with your little friend..." Replied B.

" Come on B, I want to know what you're doing with all those fridge fans..." Smiled A. " Are making something?"

" Maybe I am making something, it's a secret..." Answered B with a chuckle.

I looked over at the fridge and saw Backup peep his head from behind it with a smirk on his face. He walked from behind the fridge and walked over to the breakfast counter. He sat a stool across from A, he took a raisin biscuit from a plate on the counter and took a big bite out of it. He looked over at me with a disturbing grin on his face, he took my cup of tea from in front of me and took a sip of my tea.

" What are you doing in the kitchen anyway?" Asked A.

" None of your business..." Replied B.

" Don't tell me, you're after another jar of strawberry jam..." Smiled A as he threw a piece of biscuit at him. "I'll be surprised if you'll even be allowed to have anymore jam with what you did to that kid at breakfast, what was her name again?"

" Q, her name was Q..." Answered B.

" Right, poor her..." Chuckled A, he looked over at me and gave me a smile. " She's the girl who made those walkie-taklies, she pretty clever when it comes to advanced technology or electronics..."

" Alternative..." Said B in a eerie tone. " I'm here with a message for you and your little friend, would you like to hear it?"

" Alright Backup, I'll amusing for a moment..." Replied A, he leant on his hand and turned his attention back to him. "And who is the message from?"

" It's from a secret source, but the message is very important for one of you..." Replied B.

" Then I think you should share it with us right away, what's the message?" Asked A.

" Someone is coming tonight..." Replied B in an eerie tone, he placed my cup of tea back in front of me and hopped down from the stool. " You should hide, you're going to be in for a fright... someone is going to die tonight..."


	13. Run For Your Life!

**Hey, Nukia here!**

**This fanfiction is a side story to Beyond This Love.**

**I don't know if any of my old readers are reading my rewrites anymore, but I am going to tell you what happened in the Midnight Slasher case in The Wammy House Memories. I never finished The Alternative Story, but I'm going to tie it in with this fanfiction because I enjoyed writing A's story. This chapter will be short, but it will end on a cliffhanger.**

**At the moment I want to write most of this fanfiction, I will go back to writing Beyond This Love when I get to a certain point in this story. I've also drawn a cover for this fanfiction, I will probably post it up on my DA account at some point. **

**But thank you for the reviews, favorites and the alerts! Also to the unknown people who read my fanfictions, I promise it will pick up at some point! If you don't like it, then don't read it.**

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter 13!<strong>

It was just after 11:30pm and I couldn't sleep. I couldn't stop thinking about what Backup had said to me and A in the kitchen this morning. A had chased him out of the kitchen not long after what he said to the both of us, I've not seen any of them since breakfast. I just hope Backup was playing one of his creepy games with us, I know he likes playing tricks on the other children of the orphanage and sometimes A. But it was not funny what he said during breakfast with what is going on right now with The Midnight Slasher, it's just not funny at all.

I sighed to myself and rolled onto my side, I wish I could just go to sleep. At least I'll get to go back home tomorrow, I can't wait to sleep in my own bed and have a nice hot chocolate with Rose before I got to sleep. I switched the bedside's lamp on, I sat up in the bed and took my book from the side table. I turned to the page I had bookmarked and began to read my book. I've been reading a book that my Aunt Thora gave me, she told me that she use to read it with my Grandmother when they were young. It was called The Call of the Wild, the story is set in the Yukon during the 1890s Klondike Gold Rush and it had sledging dogs in it. It was kind of boring, but it was a classic so my Aunt told me and one of her favorite books from her childhood. I glanced at the bedside table's lamp when it flickered, the fuse must be lose in the lamp or something.

I snuggled down into the pillows of the bed, I turned the page in my book and yawned. I could feel my eyes getting heavy, I closed my book and placed it down next to me on the bed. I switched the lamp off and covered myself up, I will read some more of my book tomorrow.

* * *

><p>I jumped up in the bed when I heard screams coming from the corridor, I kicked the blanket of myself and scrambled out of the bed. I ran over to the bedroom's door, I quickly unlocked the door and opened it wide. I watched as a group of children ran down the corridor, I stepped out of the room and quickly followed after them down the corridor. I felt someone grab hold of my hand, I stumbled a bit as I was partly dragged along the corridor and got a look at the person who was holding my hand. I saw a boy with messy dark-hair, he glanced back at me with a smirk on his face and continued to lead me down the corridor.<p>

" Backup!" I said with a hint of surprise in my voice. " What is going on?! Where are we going?!"

" Don't ask questions, just run!" He yelled and turned left into another corridor. " We've got to get to the dinner hall, that's where Watari is with the other orphans!"

" Where's A?!" I asked.

" I don't know, he told me to get you before he ran to get Watari..." He replied. " He's waiting for us in the dinner hall with everyone else though, we've got hide from him!"

" From who?" I asked.

" The Midnight Slasher, he's somewhere in The Wammy House!" He answered, his grip tightened around my hand." He's already injured one boy, now he maybe after you or A!"

" No, he can't be here..." I muttered.

I looked behind me as we made our way down the two flights of stairs that led to the ground floor of The Wammy House, we ran past Watari's office and ran down the hallway that led to the dinner hall. I fell onto my knees when Backup stopped dead in front of me, he dragged me up from the floor and led me back down the corridor where we had just come from moments ago.

" What's wrong?" I asked as I panted." I thought we were going to the dinner hall..."

" Change of plan, we need to hide somewhere else..." He said in a low voice." There was a body at the end of that corridor, we can't go to the dinner hall after all. But I know where we can hide, you can trust me..."

I glanced back down the corridor as the light's of the orphanage began to flicker, I heard more children screaming as I was stopped in front of a door. I watched as Backup quickly opened the door, he dragged me into the dimly lit room and closed the door behind him. He let go of my hand, he pointed over to the sofa and told me to sit down on it. I did as he said, I watched him run over to desk, he began to rummage around in the desk's draws and chuckled as he took a key from one of the draws. He rushed back over to the door, he locked it and put the key into his jean pocket as he looked over at me with a smirk on his face.

" You've got to be quiet like a mouse, no talking at loud volumes or crying like a little scared baby..." He said as he walked over to the desk and switched the desk's table lamp on. " No sudden movements, we cannot be found or we may get slashed by him. Do you understand, Elizabeth?"

" I un-un-understand..." I stuttered.

" Good..." He smiled.

I took a quick look around the room, it was quite minimalist and plain. There was a wooden cabinet filled with books in one corner of the room, there were piles of folders stacked on the desk in the middle of the room and a chessboard on the coffee table in front of me. I glanced over at Backup as he drew the window's white thin coloured drapes, he then grabbed some blankets from a brown leather sofa chair near the window and carried them over to the door. He dropped them in front of the door, he then got onto his knees and began to roll up the blankets.

" What are you doing?" I asked.

" Shielding the lamp's light from the corridor, we shall be safe as long as no one knows we're here..." He whispered, he placed one of the rolled up blankets in front of the gap of the bottom of the door and pointed over to the wooden cabinet. " There is a jar of strawberry jam in the top draw of that cabinet, I need you to get it for me..."

" Okay..." I nodded.

" Please walk carefully, the floorboards in this room can be creaky..." He said.

I slipped from the sofa and tiptoed over to the cabinet, I wonder what he plans to do with a jar of strawberry jam? I opened the top draw of the cabinet, I took the jam jar from it and closed the draw. I walked over to Backup, I watched him get up from the floor and held the jam jar towards him.

" Pour half of the strawberry jam in front of the rolled up blankets, then I want you to sit back down on the sofa and stay quiet. You can sleep if you like, but you've got to keep quiet at all costs..." He whispered. " Don't touch anything, he dislikes people touching his belongings..."

" Who's he?" I asked.

" L, this is his office after all..." He replied and walked over to the desk. " Now hurry, we don't have all day..."

I unscrewed the lid on the jar, I poured some of the strawberry jam on the floor like Backup had told me to do and chewed at my bottom lip. I put the lid back on the jar, I walked over to the sofa and sat back down on it. I looked over at Backup, he was sitting on a chair at the desk with his feet up on the desk's table top and held a silver letter opener in his hand. I hugged the jam jar tightly as I curled up on my side on the sofa, I looked over at the desk and listened to Backup chuckling quietly to himself as the office chair creaked under his weight.

" Isn't this delightful, I like hiding games in the dead of the night..." He said quietly. " Even more delightful when we're hiding to save our life's from a serial killer, don't you find it exciting too?"

" I find it terrifying..." I whispered.

" That's because you're a silly little girl, you don't understand The Midnight Slasher like I do..." He smirked and got up from the office chair. " Unlike A, I know the real reason why he takes the life's of innocent people. It's an experiment you see, he kills to see what makes them tick when they close their eyes for the final time before the eternal sleep..."

" L said The Midnight Slasher murdered people because of sin..." I said quietly, I sat up on the sofa and watched Backup place the silver letter opener down on the desk. " He's nothing but a monster, he takes innocent people's life's because that's all he can be in this world. Mr Wammy will catch him, he will go to jail for years for what he's done to all of those poor people and A's family!"

" A monster? Yes, I like that word..." He chuckled. " He may kill because of sin, but what he's really doing is cleansing them before death. He's making them pure before they pass over to their new life in the next world, we're all born in sin you know..."

" That's a stupid reason, he's a monster!" I frowned.

I jumped when I heard the handle of the room's door rattling, I placed the jar of strawberry jam down on the pillow next to me and got up from the sofa. I looked over at Backup, he beckoned me over to the desk with his hand and switched off the desk's lamp. I carefully walked over to the desk, I gasped as I got pulled under the desk and felt Backup put his hand over my mouth.

" Ssssh..." He said as he uncovered my mouth. " Don't say a word, don't even breath. Someone is here to play with us..."

I listened to the door's handle rattle again, I looked at Backup kneeing next to me and watched him smirking. This situation we were in was amusing him, he was getting a kick out of a serial killer coming after us. I shuffled away from him and felt the leg of the desk touch my back. I pulled my knees to my chest, I heard footsteps walking off down the corridor and let out a sigh of relief as I rested my chin on my knee.

" Do you think he's gone now?" I whispered.

" No, he's still coming for us..." He whispered with smirk slowly spreading across his face. " Can't you hear the walls creaking? He must know about the secret passage L uses sometimes to get to his room, he must have been stalking these halls for a very long time without anyone's knowledge..."

" I'm scared..." I whispered as I felt my bottom lip tremble. " I need to get out of this room, I want to go home!"

" Alright, I can arrange that for you..." He smirked.

I watched Backup crawl from under the desk, I quickly followed after him and got up from the floor. I looked around the room as I heard more creaking sounds coming from all around us, I saw Backup grab the silver letter opener from the desk and I back away from him. I heard a gently tapping sound coming from behind me, I quickly turned around and saw an outline of a very tall man standing outside of the window. I grabbed hold of Backup's arm as I yelled, I pulled him away from the window and heard a gunshot come from outside. I stumbled backwards when I heard another gunshot, I felt a sharp pain on the back of my head and fell to the floor as everything around me turned into darkness.


	14. I Don't Remember!

**Hey, Nukia here!**

**This fanfiction is a side story to Beyond This Love.**

**I don't know if any of my old readers are reading my rewrites anymore, but I am going to tell you what happened in the Midnight Slasher case in The Wammy House Memories. This chapter is short, I hope it doesn't sound to rushed. **

**But thank you for the reviews, favorites and the alerts! Also to the unknown people who read my fanfictions, I promise it will pick up at some point! If you don't like it, then don't read it.**

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter 14!<strong>

I can hear birds chirping, they're singing such a peaceful melody to me. I can feel the warm touch of the sunlight on my skin, I can smell sweet scent of grapes filling my nostrils for some reason. I slowly opened my eyes, all I could see was a bright light shining down on me. Am I on my way to heaven?

" Hey Elizabeth, can you hear me?" I heard a voice whispered in my left ear. " It's time to wake up, you've been asleep for hours now. Aren't you hungry yet or tired of sleeping the day away?"

I turned my head to the left, I saw a blurred outline of a face staring at me with bright blue eyes and big smile across their face. I slowly rubbed at my right eye as I reached my hand towards the person's face, I softly ran finger tips down the person's cheek with my hand and slightly smiled.

" Mummy?" I asked quietly." Have you come to take me home?"

" Mummy?!" Laughed the person. " You must have banged your head harder than we thought, how are you feeling?"

" A, is that you?" I asked and pinched the person's nose with a giggle. " I'm feeling great and all silly inside right now! Do you have any toffee? I feel like eating a big bowl of lemon jelly with whipped cream and chocolate drops sprinkled over the top of the whipped cream!"

" Yeah, it's me..." He replied with a smile, he took hold of my hand and placed it down next to my side. " Of course you're feeling great, you've been given a small dose of morphine for the pain which will make you feel spacey for a few hours. But you've had us all worried, your housekeeper Rose is coming to visit you this evening with your Aunt. I think you're going to stay here again for the night under the observation of Nurse Clark, she's really nice..."

" Where am I?" I asked.

" You're in the hospital wing of The Wammy House, don't you remember what happened?" He asked. " You fell and banged the back of your head really hard on L's desk in his office, you may have a mild concussion which may explain your short-term memory loss right now. Can I ask what you do remember from last night?"

" I don't know, my head feels fuzzy..." I answered, I placed my finger tip on my bottom lip and looked up at the ceiling. " But I can remember Backup, he was with me in L's office..."

" He was with you, but what else can you remember?" He asked." It's important, you'll be questioned by Watari and L again. That's why I'm trying to jog your memory, if you tell me what happened I will be able to tell them on your behalf..."

" I wish I could remember what happened, but my memory is like a jigsaw right now..." I sighed.

" It's alright SJ, I'm sure the blank parts of your brain puzzle with slot back together soon..." He chuckled and got up from his chair. " I've got to go now, I was only meant to be checking up on you for Watari. But I ended up sitting with you for half an hour, I kind of ate most of your grapes though. I'm sorry about that, they looked delicious just sitting there in a bag doing nothing..."

" I had grapes?" I asked.

" Yeah, they were purple seedless grapes..." He answered, he rested his hands on the side of the bed and smiled down at me. " The ward nurses at The Wammy House are pretty good when it comes dietary, they always make sure that when a student is sick they get plenty of fresh fruit and drinking water. It's nice knowing they care that much about the children's health here, but sweets are a must for recovery..."

" I guess so..." I muttered.

" Why don't you try to relax, you'll need your rest for when your Aunt Thora get's here..." He smiled with a chuckle. " She's been frantic over what happened last night, I've never seen Watari put his phone down quick enough after he'd been on the telephone to your Aunt. She's a firecracker, you know for an old lady dude..."

" My Aunt Thora is coming to visit me?" I asked and leant on my arms as I slowly sat up in the bed. " I need to get dressed, she disapproves of me sitting around my nightie in the daylight hours!"

" But you've got an excuse to lounge around in your nightwear, so just relax and enjoy it for once..." He smiled.

" Okay, I will enjoy it just this once even if it's not ladylike..." I smiled as I pulled some blankets of me and swung my legs out of the bed. " I need a drink of water, would you get me a glass of water please?"

" Sure, I'll grab you a glass and a jug of water from the nurse's kitchen..." He replied." I'll be right back!"

I watched A disappear behind the blue curtain of hospital curtain track, I touched the back of my head and whined as my fingers brushed against something that felt like a scab on the back of my head. I took a quick look around the cubicle, there was a over-bed table at the end of bed with a sick bowl and many rolled up bandages inside of it. I turned my attention to the cabinet next to the bed, I rolled my eyes at the half ate bag of grapes and picked a purple grape from its stem. I glanced at the green IV needle in my hand, I popped the grape into my mouth and chewed it slowly.

" I'll get you some more grapes, I promise!" I heard A say. " I've brought you a few books from the library too, I'm not sure which one you've read though..."

I turned my attention to A, I watched him place a yellow glass jug of water and a plastic cup down on the cabinet. I heard a snigger come from behind the hospital curtain, I watched A pull the blue curtain back with a chuckle and was greeted by a girl with long blonde hair. I gave her smile as she slowly walked into the cubical as she carried a vase full of pink roses, she had dark brown eyes and was quite skinny. I slightly tilted my head as I watched her place the vase on the cabinet, she looked very familiar to me.

" Don't I know you?" I asked the girl.

" Yeah, I met you about a month ago when you delivered a parcel for Watari..." She replied. " I'm Nonie, I'm the girl who took the parcel from you and delivered it to Mr Ruvie. The roses are from Watari, he said they would brighten up the cubical and make you feel more at home well you stay here for another night..."

" Are you the girl from the gate?" I asked and took the plastic cup from the cabinet. " But if I remember correctly you couldn't talk, you were using sign language to communicate with Backup when I delivered the parcel. Am I right?"

" Yeah..." She nodded.

" You don't sound English, where are you from?" I asked.

" I'm from Canada originally, but I've got English and Irish blood running through my veins..." She answered and tucked some of her long blonde hair behind her ear as she glanced at A over her shoulder. " I'm year young than A, he's my..."

" Nonie! We've got to go..." Interrupted A. " Watari wanted to see us both in his office before 4pm, don't you remember?!"

" A is your what?" I asked.

" It's not important! We really need to go now, come on Nonie!" Said A through his teeth, he placed his hands on Nonie's shoulders and led her out of the cubicle as he gave me a quick wave. " I'll come back at tea time with some more grapes, get some rest until then!"

" Bye!" I waved Nonie.

I watched them both leave the cubicle, I wonder what's up with A? He seemed to not want Nonie to finish her sentence to me, maybe they were in a hurry or maybe A was hiding something from me. I sighed to myself, I took the jug from the side cabinet and carefully filled my plastic cup with water. I placed the jug back on cabinet, I slid from the bed and walked to the bottom of the bed. I took a sip of my water as I looked through the books, I picked a book called Treasure Island and placed my cup down on the over-bed table.

" Finally, you have awoken..." I heard a male's voice say. " I thought for a moment that I would have to hide until the midnight hour before you woke up, it didn't help much with Alternative visiting you. Listening to him eating those damn grapes and constantly passing gas well you slept was not very amusing for me. He can be vile at times, he as no manners at all if you ask me. Yet you choose to be his friend instead of mine, that puzzles me... "

I quickly looked up from the book, I saw Backup standing at the other end of the over-bed table with a smirk on his face. I partly opened my mouth when he held a small jar of strawberry jam towards me, he took a packet of cookies from behind his back and placed them down on the bed.

" I brought you a present, I thought you may be in need of something sweet after you accident..." He said. " Tell me, how does your cranium feel after your collision with L's office desk?"

" My head hurts, but thank you for the present..." I answered quietly, I walked back over to the cabinet and climbed into the bed. " I need to rest, so if you would please excuse me well I lay down for a while and let me read this book in peace. I'm meant to be getting some bed rest, but take a seat if you plan to stay and keep me company for a while well I read..."

" I don't plan to stay, I just wanted to check on your lifespan..." He smirked. " You're a very peculiar human, why is your lifespan frozen? Does it mean something important or are you broken in some way?"

" Don't start that lifespan business again, I don't believe that a person can know when someone is going to die!" I sighed and opened the book. " Just go if that's all you plan to talk about well you sit with me, but you can stay if you tell me what happened in L's office..."

" You can't remember what happened in L's office?" He asked and closed the blue curtains of hospital curtain track around the cubical. " How delightful, I find that quite amusing that you can't remember about how you saved me or maybe saved yourself from The Midnight Slasher. How ironic, don't you think?"

" I saved you?" I asked.

" Yes, you pulled me away from the window before you fell..." He answered and walked slowly to the other side of the bed as he ran his finger tips along the blankets." He pulled a very large steak knife from his mackintosh coat, I didn't get a chance to see his face before Watari shot him dead with his sniper rifle. A single bullet to the back of his head, the bullet passed straight through his skull. His blood splatter across the window like paint being flicked from a brush onto a sheet of paper, he didn't even get a chance to scream. He was given a warning shot by Watari, but I guess he was to determined about finishing his game after all of those long years..."

" How awful..." I muttered.

" It wasn't awful at all, I've never seen anyone get shot at close range before which was fascinating to me..." He smirked. " It's given me the thirst to look up criminal psychology, I want to know what makes a person commit crimes or murders in this case..."

" You're twisted, why would you want to learn about things like that?" I asked.

" Because I want to be the best, I want to be number one!" He replied. " I want to achieve as much as possible well I'm still young, I want unlimited knowledge about everything in this world!"

" Okay, good luck with that I guess..." I muttered.

" I don't need luck, I make my own luck!" He chuckled.

I watched him stop dead as he looked up at the ceiling, he glanced down at the floor and fell to his knees. I sat up straight in the bed, I watched him quickly crawl under the bed in the next cubical and disappear out of sight. I looked over at the curtain when I heard it get drawn back, I watched a nurse walk into the cubicle and smiled when I saw Rose following behind her. I climbed out of the bed, I was pulled into a tight hug by Rose and snuggled my face into her chest as I smiled.

" You little rascal, you've had me and your Aunt worried like there was no tomorrow about you!" She said softly. " I was dreadfully worried when we got the call about your accident, something about you playing pirates with a few other children in one of the offices and you fell off a desk! My heart was in my throat, don't ever do anything like that again..."

" I was playing pirates?" I asked.

" Yes, but Mr Wammy told me that you're suffering with a mild case of short-term memory loss at the moment..." She replied. " My poor girl, how is your head feeling?"

" My head is fine, well it's kind of sore right now..." I replied and pulled myself away from her. " But you're here now! I got told that you were going to visit me today, where is my Aunt Thora?"

" She is with Watari, but she will be along soon to see you..." She answered as she cupped my face. " My poor little Elizabeth, I don't know what I would have done if I lost my little kitchen assistant!"

" You're weird..." I smiled.

" Pish posh!" She laughed, she gently kissed my forehead and sighed. " I've brought you a box of chocolates and some of your favorite soup for your dinner. I've packed all of your belongs in the room you were standing in, they will be brought down here to the ward before you go to sleep tonight. Remember to have a wash too, clean behind both of your ears or you'll be growing mushrooms from behind them..."

" Rose, you're embarrassing me!" I giggled.

" Now then little Miss, get in that bed before your Aunt gets here..." She smiled. " You're meant to be resting, so get your little tush on that bed!"

I climbed back onto the bed, I covered myself up with the blankets and watched Rose sit down on the end of the bed. I listened to her talking about what had been going on at home well I had been staying at The Wammy House well she flicked through a magazine, she even told me about a little stray cat that had been hanging around in the cottage's back garden. I began to curl a piece of my hair around my finger as I looked away from Rose, she sure knows how to talk a lot sometimes.


	15. Going Away

**Hey, Nukia here!**

**This fanfiction is a side story to Beyond This Love.**

**I don't know if any of my old readers are reading my rewrites anymore, but I'm going to keep going. I plan to do a time skip in this chapter, it will be a few months after what happened at The Wammy House. SJ will be 12, but I can't give away what will happened in this chapter because I don't know myself yet. But it will be the month of December, it will just be one of those nice random chapters before I begin to write the sad chapters. **

**But thank you for the reviews, favorites and the alerts! Also to the unknown people who read my fanfictions, I promise it will pick up at some point! If you don't like it, then don't read it.**

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter 15!<strong>

The months have flown by since the horrible events that had happened that night at The Wammy House, I have started to remember most of what happened now. But I'm trying to forget it, I had nightmares for months about The Midnight Slasher after that night at the orphanage and my Aunt Thora sent me to have a few lesson of therapy at the local hospital because she was worried about my mental health.

I've not been back to the orphanage since then, My Aunt will not allow it. I am allowed to stay in touch with A though, I ring him twice a week and write him letters sometimes. I miss him and a few of the other children from The Wammy House, but I understand why my Aunt is keeping me away from the orphanage.

I sighed to myself as I zipped up my blue duffel bag, I'm visiting my Mum's old best friend Bella in Oxford for a week. I've not seen her since I was 9 years old, I'm pretty excited to be visiting her though. We've stayed in touch with each other over the years like she promised we would all those years ago when I was a little girl, she as a little boy of her own now and I'm really looking forward to meeting him in person. His name was Jamie, she as sent me a few photographs of him and her over the years that I keep on my bedroom wall near my bed.

" Elizabeth, your taxi is here!" I heard Rose call from downstairs.

" Okay!" I yelled." Just give me a moment!"

" I'll tell the taxi driver 5 minutes then!" She yelled back. " I know what you're like!"

I put my red coat on and hung my duffel bag over my shoulder, I better hurry because my train leaves the station at 10:45am. I quickly left my bedroom, I rushed down the stairs and put a my black boots on. I gave Rose a hug, she told me to ring her the moment I arrived in Oxford and she made sure I had my train ticket in my bag.

" Are you sure you don't want me to come with you to Oxford?" She asked and buttoned up my coat." I know you want your independence, but you're only 13 years old after all..."

" I'll be fine!" I smiled. " Stop worrying about me, Aunt Thora said it's fine for me to travel alone. Besides, Bella will be meeting me at the train station in Oxford..."

" Do remember where you've arranged to meet her?" She asked.

" Yes, I'm meeting Bella by the clock lamp post near the paper shop on the platform..." I replied. " So stop worrying about me, I'll be fine!"

" I know my love, but I'll still worry about you until you ring us!" She smiled as she straightened out the collar on my coat." Do you have your purse in your bag too? Your Aunt as put £20 pounds in it for you, there is also some change in your purse in case you need to make a phone call for any reason..."

" Yes, I doubled checked on my purse last night and this morning!" I replied with a sigh. " I'm all set to go!"

" Miss Havisham!" She called. " Elizabeth is ready to go now!"

I looked over my shoulder when I heard a walking stick tapping along the wooden floor of the living room, I turned around to face the living room's doorway and watched my Aunt walk out of the living room. I tucked some of my hair behind my ear as she looked down at me with stern expression on her face, I gave her a small smile and took a step towards her.

" I hope you have a pleasant train journey to Oxford, please remember to not talk to any strangers on the train..." She said, she held a medium sized white cardboard box towards me and a few red coloured envelopes balanced on top of the box. " This parcel arrived this morning in the post, apparently it's from it's from The Wammy House seeing as it holds Mr Watari's private steal. These Christmas cards are for Bella and her family from me, I would like you to thank her on my behalf for letting you stay at her home for the next week. I believe this little break from Winchester will do you some good, also will you give her my seasonal greetings and remember to greet her in the correct manner!"

" Thank you Aunt Thora, I will pass on your message..." I smiled.

" Do you have your train ticket and spending money for the train journey?" She asked.

" Yes, I put my train ticket and my purse in my bag last night before I went to bed..." I answered and put my black woolly hat on my head. " I double checked that I had them both in my bag this morning and Rose just checked too, so I'm all set to go now!"

" Very good!" She smiled slightly as she looked over at Rose. " Rose, I believe Elizabeth will be needing a bag for those cards and box. Did you get that gift bag from my study like I asked you this morning?"

" Yes Miss Havisham, I have it right here..." Replied Rose.

I took the box and envelopes from my Aunt, I carefully placed them in the Christmas gift bag Rose was holding open for me. I said my goodbyes to my family, I hurried along the pathway from the cottage and got into the back of the taxi. I waved to my Aunt and Rose as the taxi pulled away from the cottage, I can't wait to see Bella again.

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><p>It wasn't long until I arrived at Winchester Train Station, it was now 10:30am. I got out of the taxi, I grabbed my duffel bag and the Christmas gift bag from the backseat of the taxi. I thanked the taxi driver before I walked into the train station, I stopped outside of a little shop inside of the station and brought myself some lunch for my train journey. I smiled to myself when I noticed some little shark snapper toys in a blue bucket outside of the shop, I remember Bella buying me one when I first arrive in Winchester. I decided to buy Jamie one, I paid for the toy and made my way to the train platform. I sat down on a bench near a little café, I watched people walking up and down the platform.<p>

It wasn't as busy as I thought it would have been at this time of year, it was the 3rd of December and there was just 22 days until Christmas. It wasn't long until the train to Oxford pulled into the station, I picked my duffel bag and gift bag up from the bench. I stood for moment as I watched people hurrying off the train, I took one last look around me and got onto the train. I walked along the corridor of the train, I chose a train compartment to sit in and placed my bags down on a red passager seat.

" Right!" I said to myself and sat down next to the window as I sighed. " What will I do for the next hour and a half?"

I glanced at the Christmas bag on the seat next to me, I chewed at my bottom lip and decided to see what was in the box from The Wammy House. I took the box from the gift bag, I pulled the piece of sellotape from around the lid and broke the wax steal on the box. I noticed an inked Gothic A inside of the box when I removed the lid, I guess the box is from A. I jolted forward slightly as the train began to move, I looked inside of the box and let a quiet laugh as I took a book from the box called Great Expectations.

" I should have known!" I smiled.

For some reason A thinks the book was written about my Aunt Thora, just because she shares the same surname as one of the characters in the book doesn't make them the same person. He even makes fun of me sometimes saying I'm my Aunt's young ward like Estella in the book to Miss Havisham. I know my Aunt is stern and quiet cold hearted at times with me, but I don't think she is using me for a tool to avenge her broken heart or something silly like that.

I placed the book down next to me on the seat, I rummaged around in the box and took a bag of strawberry flavoured candy boot laces from it. There was many random things in the box, toffee, rainbow badges, stickers of cats, pencils, bottles of red glitter, a little bottle of glue, sequins, cherry flavoured lip gloss, gold stars and a green coloured tree air freshener.

I carefully put the box back into the gift bag, I picked the book up from the seat and undid my coat. I pulled my knees to my chest, I leant back against the passager seat and began to read my book.

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><p>It wasn't long until the train pulled into Oxford Station, I put my duffel bag on and picked the Christmas gift bag up from the seat. I left the compartment and made my way down the corridor with the other passagers, I jumped from the step of the train's doorway and continued walking along the platform. I smiled to myself as I looked around me, it had changed much at all over the years. There was still a little café open on the corner of the station where I once had tea with my Mum, the newspaper shop was still in the same place and Christmas music played from the train station's ticket offices.<p>

I stopped near the clock lamp-post where I had arranged to meet Bella, I took a strawberry boot lace from the gift bag and let the lace hang from my mouth as I ate it slowly. I leant my shoulder against the lamp-post, I sighed to myself and sucked the rest of the boot lace into my mouth. I looked up at the clock on top of the lamp-post, it had just turned 1:36pm.

" Elizabeth?" I heard a woman's voice ask from behind me. " Is that you?"

I quickly stood up straight, I wiped some drool away from my mouth and turned around. I saw a tall blonde-haired woman standing behind me, she was wearing a long black fluffy coat and had a yellow umbrella in her hand. I quickly looked her up and down with a smile on my face, it's Bella.

" Bella!" I smiled and wrapped my arms around her waist. " I'm so happy to make your acquaintance again after all of these years, I've been looking forward to seeing you since you agreed that I could come and stay with you for the week!"

" Look at you!" She smiled as she wrapped her arms around me. " You look just like your Mother when she was your age, how was your train journey? I can't believe how grown up you look and the way you speak, I can't believe you're the same little girl I took to Winchester all those years ago!"

" My train journey was fine, I was kind of bored though and began to read Great Expectations..." I replied, I pulled myself away from her and held the shark snapper towards Bella with a smile on my face. " I brought Jamie this shark snapper toy, I thought he would like one. I can remember you buying me one when I first arrived at the train station in Winchester, I still have it my bedroom back at my Aunt's cottage..."

" I guess things never change, you complained about being bored every 2 minutes when I took you to Winchester to live with your Aunt on the train..." She smiled, she put her arm around me and led me towards the entrance of the train station. " Come on, let's you get warmed up! There is someone dying to meet you back at my house, but he maybe having his afternoon nap about now..."

" Okay, I can't wait to meet him!" I smiled.

" So, how is your Aunt?" She asked. " Rose told me that she was ill a few months ago, is she feeling better now?"

" Oh yes, she's feeling much better now!" I replied and looked up at Bella. " My Aunt Thora told me to give you her seasonal greetings too, I have some Christmas cards for you from her as well. Will it be okay if I use your house telephone when we arrive at your house? I promised Rose and my Aunt that I would ring them when I arrived in Oxford..."

" That's good, I'm glad she is feeling better now..." She replied. " Of course you can use my phone sweetie, I would like you to treat my home as your home well you stay with my family..."

" Really?" I asked.

" Yeah, I want you to feel at home well you're staying with me..." She replied, she patted my shoulder with her hand and took her car keys from her coat pocket. " I hope you still like beans on toast, that's all I've got in until I go food shopping tomorrow..."

" Of course, it's one of my favorite meals still!" I answered with a smile. "Can I come food shopping with you? I would love to see Oxford town centre again, will there also be a chance for me to visit my Mum's and Grandmother's grave well I am visiting you?"

" Sure, you can do anything you like well you're in Oxford with me..." She smiled.

" Cool, I can't wait!" I smiled.


	16. Hospital

**Hey, Nukia here!**

**This fanfiction is a side story to Beyond This Love.**

**I don't know if any of my old readers are reading my rewrites anymore, but I'm going to keep going. I'm not sure if this chapter will make sense, it's split into 3 parts and I've got a feeling that I've missed something but I'm not sure what yet. **

**But thank you for the reviews, favorites and the alerts! Also to the unknown people who read my fanfictions, I promise it will pick up at some point! If you don't like it, then don't read it.**

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter 16!<strong>

I arrived back at my Aunt's cottage about 4 hours ago from Oxford, I'm so tired after the train journey back to Winchester. But I enjoyed spending time with Bella and Jamie, I visited so many places well I was staying with them. I went to the shopping centre, I went for a wander around the grounds of Oxford University and basically saw all the sights of the town. I also went to visit my Mum and Grandmother's grave, it felt weird going back to see their gravestone after all of these years. I plan to visit Bella again really soon if my Aunt will let me sometime next year in the summer.

I looked over at my duffel bag leaning against my wardrobe, I'm feeling to sleepy to unpack my dirty clothes right now. I've been getting up earlier than I normally would well I was staying with Bella, but I didn't mind because I got to do many fun things with her and little Jamie.

" Elizabeth, I've made you a tuna and sweetcorn sandwich!" I heard Rose call from downstairs. " Do you want me to bring it upstairs to your room or shall I leave it in the fridge until your ready to eat?"

" I'll be down in a moment or two!" I yelled.

" I'll put it in the fridge then!" I heard her yell back to me from downstairs with a laugh. " Why don't you take a nap, I'll wake you up when it turns 4pm!"

" Okay!" I yelled.

I blew my fringe away from my eyes, I lay back on my bed and stretched my arms out on my bed. I looked at my alarm clock on my bedside table, it was now 2:30pm and I didn't feel like moving from my comfy bed. I grabbed hold of one of my pillows from my bed, I snuggled my face into it and closed my eyes as I curled up into a ball. I guess I could just rest my eyes for one moment, a little nap doesn't sound like a bad idea right now.

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><p>I felt myself being roughly shaken awaken, I partly opened my eyes to see Rose looking down at me with a look of concern on her face as she kept repeating name. I quickly sat up in my bed, I looked around my bedroom and heard male voices coming from downstairs.<p>

" What's going on? Do we have visitors?" I asked sleepily. " Is it 4pm already?"

" Oh Elizabeth, something terrible as happened to your Aunt!" She said with a hint of worry in her voice as she took hold of my hands. " You've got to get your coat on and come with me immediately, Miss Havisham as been rushed to the hospital!"

" What?!" I asked, I quickly slid from my bed and put my shoes on." What's happened?! Is my Aunt Thora okay?!"

" I don't know my love, but be quick and get your coat!" She replied as she switched my bedside table's lamp off. " She's been taken to Royal Hampshire County Hospital, there is a taxi waiting for us outside of the cottage!"

I rushed out of my bedroom with Rose, we hurried down the stairs and took our coats from the pegs in the hallway. I watched Rose hurry into the kitchen to get her handbag, she yelled to me to go and get her set of cottage keys from the key bowl in the living room. I walked into the living room, I saw blue flashing lights coming from the road outside of the cottage. I took a look around the room as I grabbed Rose's keys from the bowl next to the sofa, my Aunt's favorite teacup lay broken on the floor and her book left open on the arm of her favorite Victorian leather sofa chair. I carefully picked her broken teacup up from the floor, I placed the broke pieces of the teacup down on the coffee table and walked out of the living room.

" Elizabeth, can you grab Miss Havisham overnight bag from the hallway before we leave?" I heard Rose call from the kitchen." I'm just locking the kitchen's back door and closing the window, I'll just be one moment!"

" Okay!" I nodded, I glanced over at my Aunt's overnight bag by the coat-rack and put my coat on as Rose left the kitchen. " Did you pack her favorite nightgown and hot-water bottle?"

" Oh course! Come on my dear, let's get going..." She replied, she closed the kitchen door behind her and placed her hand on my shoulder as she led me towards the front door. " Your Aunt is most probably at the hospital by now, she left about 30 minutes ago. I didn't want to wake you well the paramedics were here, it would have only distressed you..."

" I understand Rose, what happened to my Aunt?" I asked.

" It's not my place to say my love, let's just get to the hospital and see what the doctors say..." She answered. " I hope I remembered to locked the back door, we don't want any unwelcome visitors well we're at the hospital..."

" You've locked it..." I said with a slight smile as I grabbed my Aunt's overnight bag from the floor. " The cottage isn't that important right now, we need to get to the hospital and be there for my Aunt Thora. She needs us, we've got to look after her until she feels better again and she will be okay, right Rose?"

" I bet she will be just fine, let's hurry now!" She replied.

I hurried through the front door of the cottage with Rose, she locked the door and put her set of keys in her handbag. We hurried along the pathway together, I closed the garden gate behind me and got in the back of taxi. I hugged my Aunt's overnight bag close to my chest as the taxi pulled away from my home, I looked through the car's back window and saw a police car parked outside of the cottage as the taxi drove off down the lane.

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><p>The taxi pulled up outside of the Royal Hampshire County Hospital, Rose took her purse from her handbag and told me to wait inside of the hospital for her. I got out of the taxi, I closed the car's door behind me and hurried into the hospital's reception. I stopped near some blue plastic chairs in the reception area, I took a quick look around the reception as I chewed at my bottom lip. I've never liked hospitals, the smell of disinfectant and the beeping sounds of the machines always made me feel nervous. I saw Rose hurrying through the main entrance of the hospital, she made her way to the reception desk and took an envelope from her handbag. I quickly followed after her, we got directions from the receptionist to the ward that my Aunt was being kept on. We made our way to the ward my Aunt was being treated on, we saw a dark-haired nurse on the reception desk on the ward and Rose gave her my Aunt's details.<p>

" Miss Thora Havisham..." She said well she looked through her records on the desk. " Ah yes! She's in the side-room at the end of this corridor, her room number is 4C. But at the moment she's being seen by one of our doctors, so if you wouldn't mind taking a seat at the end of the corridor and I will inform him that you're here now. There's a drink vending machine down there too in case your little one needs a drink, the canteen is also open till late if you get hungry..."

" Yes, thank you..." Replied Rose. " Come on Elizabeth, we've got to go this way..."

I took hold of Rose's hand as we walked together down corridor, she stopped me by a row of blue plastic chairs along the wall of the corridor and took her purse from her handbag. I placed my Aunt's overnight bag down on one of the chairs, I watched the nurse from the reception desk go into the side-room numbered 4C and she closed the door quietly behind her.

" Elizabeth, why don't you get us some hot drinks from the vending machine down the hall..." I heard Rose say. " We maybe waiting for a while yet to see a doctor, so we better get something warm to drink well we've got the chance..."

" Okay, what would you like to drink?" I asked and turned my attention to Rose. " Tea, soup, hot chocolate, coffee..."

" Tea for me, you on the other hand better stay away from the coffee..." She answered, she took some money from her purse and held a few coins towards me on her hand. " Here we go, that should me enough. You better hurry up my dear, I'm gasping for a hot drink..."

" Okay.." I nodded.

I took the money from Rose's hand, I walked back down the corridor and stopped in front of the vending machine. I read through the list of drinks and settled on a hot chocolate for myself. I put some money into the machine, I ordered a tea for Rose first and then a hot chocolate for me. I took the plastic cups from the machine, I looked back down the corridor and saw a blonde-haired doctor talking to Rose. I carefully walked back down the corridor, I stopped near a water cooler and listened in on their conversation.

" Miss Morrissey?" He asked.

" Yes, that's me..." She answered.

" Hello, I'm Doctor James Marshall..." He smiled and shook Rose's hand. " I'll be treating Miss Havisham well she's under our care in this ward, I don't have all of her results back just yet. But from what I gather this is not the first time she's been rushed into hospital in the last few months, am I correct?"

" Yes, she was rushed in on August the 15th with breathing problems..." She answered. " Is Miss Havisham okay? It was quite a shock to my system when she collapsed after she had her afternoon tea, I'm here with her young Great Niece Elizabeth. She doesn't know that her Aunt is seriously ill, we made up a covering story saying that her Aunt was staying in a health retreat in the Peak District the last time she was rushed into the hospital. If you could please keep it discreet for her sake, we plan on not telling her just yet..."

" I understand..." He nodded.

I hid behind the water cooler and leant back against the wall as I took a sharp breath, I must be hearing things. Why would Rose and my Aunt lie to me about the Peak District? What is going on? If my Aunt is really that sick then why haven't they told me yet? I peeped my head around the water cooler and continued to listen in on their conversation.

" I'm afraid to say Miss Havisham as a mild case of Pneumonia, we were very lucky to catch it when we did..." I heard him answered. " It says in her medical notes that a close family member of Miss Havisham died from Pneumonia, am I right?"

" I'm not really sure, you're asking the wrong person for that kind of information..." She replied. " You're best calling her GP, he's got all of Miss Havisham's medical family history in his records from her Father to her Mother and other family members..."

" You're right sir!" I said loudly, I hurried over to the doctor with the cups of hot drinks in my hands and stopped next to him as I spilt some of the tea on the floor. " My Mum died of Pneumonia when I was 8 years old, I was given the Pneumococcal Vaccine because there's a history of lung disease in my family. My Grandmother, Annabella died from respiratory failure and..."

" Elizabeth!" Interrupted Rose as she placed her hand on my shoulder. " Don't be rude, the doctor was talking to me!"

" I'm sorry, I didn't mean to interrupt you both..." I sighed." But how is my Aunt Thora? Will we be able to see her?"

" It's quite alright, you don't have to say you're sorry..." He smiled. " You seem to know your families medical history quiet well, that's good that you informed me about the lung disease in your family. But your Aunt is being cared for by one of our nurses right now, you may not be able to see her until tomorrow morning..."

" Oh..." I sighed.

" Excuse me doctor, but what will happen now?" Asked Rose." When will Miss Havisham be allowed to come home? Will she need any care workers or the local doctor to pay her visits in the week? I have to say Miss Havisham is set in her ways, she dislikes change in her daily routines..."

" At the moment she will be staying in hospital for the next few days, she needs to have more bloods taken and around the clock supervision for the moment..."He replied. " There will be a few changes to her daily routine, she will need a oxygen canister for her breathing at times and her medication will be doubled at some point in the future months..."

" Oh I see, how long will it take her to recover this time?" Asked Rose.

" It will take her about two to four weeks to recover, I've prescribed some antibiotics for Miss Havisham to take once a day..." He replied as he closed his folder and put his pen in his suit pocket. " Just give her the antibiotics, make sure she gets plenty of rest and fluids. Other than that she will be back on her feet in no time, but you do understand that her lungs are deteriorating at a slow rate. Like before we've discussed in the past that we're not sure how long Miss Havisham as left, have you discussed future plans yet with her?"

" Are you saying my Aunt is going to die?!" I gasped and looked up at Rose. " Tell me that he's lying! She can't die yet, she's to much of a firecracker to die!"

" Elizabeth, it's okay..." She soothed as she gently rubbed my shoulder and kept her eyes on the doctor. "I understand doctor, thank you for your time..."

" It's not a problem, I will come back when I know more..." He smiled.

I watched the doctor walk down the corridor, I looked up at Rose standing next to me and watched her sit down on one of the chairs by the wall. I walked over to her and sat down next to her. I held her cup of tea I got from the vending machine towards her, I gave her a small smile as she took the cup from my hand and sighed deeply to myself. I guess my Aunt Thora is really sick this time, I don't really know what to think right now after what the doctor had told us.

" I'm sorry for my outburst, I should have known better..." I said quietly.

" It's okay my love, it's not your fault how you reacted..." She smiled.

" She will be okay for now though, right?" I asked.

" Of course, your Aunt is a firecracker like you said..." She replied, she put her arm around me and kissed the top of my head. " I bet she'll be right as rain by the morning and demanding her morning cup of tea, but you do understand that your Aunt is really ill. We didn't want you to find out this way, your Aunt was planning to tell you about her..."

" It's okay Rose, I understand!" I interrupted." You don' have to say it, it's okay!"

" You've grown up to quickly, you're a credit to Miss Havisham..." She smiled. " You don't know how much you mean to her, she is very proud of you even if she doesn't show it. Do you want me to grab you a bite to eat from the canteen?"

" No, I'm not hungry right now..." I replied quietly and took a sip of my hot drink. " Do you think we will be able to see her tonight? I know the doctor said in the morning, but I just want to see her..."

" We'll see my dear, will you be okay for a moment well I just make a few phone calls?" She asked, she removed her arm from around me and picked her handbag up from the floor. " There is a few people I need to ring, I'll only be at that payphone down the corridor..."

" Yes, I will be fine..." I answered.

" Good girl, I'll try to hurry..." She smiled.

I watched Rose walk off down the corridor, I took another sip of my hot chocolate and looked over at the side-room my Aunt was staying in. I'm not really sure what's wrong with her, but I hope she gets well enough soon so she can returned back to the cottage. I want to make her happy and spend more time with her before I lose her, I can't think of my life without my Aunt being part of it.


	17. I Didn't Know

**Hey, Nukia here!**

**This fanfiction is a side story to Beyond This Love.**

**I don't know if any of my old readers are reading my rewrites anymore, but I'm going to keep going. I felt like I rushed this chapter, I feel like doing some fun chapters before I get to the sad chapters.**

**But thank you for the reviews, favorites and the alerts! Also to the unknown people who read my fanfictions, I promise it will pick up at some point! If you don't like it, then don't read it.**

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter 17!<strong>

Christmas had come and gone, the whole seasonal period had been a blur to my family. My Aunt had returned home a few days before Christmas day, her mood had lightened for some reason and she seemed to enjoy Christmas day this year more than she normally would in the past. We had a fun New Year too, my Aunt threw a massive party in her cottage. She invited some of her old friends from the local village to come and see in the New Year with us. She actually got up and danced with me, we spent most of the night dancing around the living room like fools and eating loads of strawberry cream cake. She as even been playing board games with me, she taught me to how knit and sew buttons on clothe's properly.

But life carries on, she as days when she's to sick to get out of bed. I sit with her sometimes well she's having her afternoon tea in bed and read books to her from her childhood, she says I need to improve my reading skills because I get stuck on long words. I just nod my head at her and carry on reading, I've learned over the years to never disagree with her because you will never win.

But today was one of my Aunt's bad days, she's in her bedroom right now on her ventilator machine well she sleeps. A nurse called Alison dropped by earlier to check up on her, she seems to be stable and her lung function is fine. I'm just happy knowing she's doing okay and she's not in pain, but sometimes I think of the future which is always a bad thing. I cry sometimes in the shower without my Aunt or Rose knowing, I'm scared of what the future holds for me.

I was snapped out of my thoughts when I heard a knock at the front door, I wonder who that is? I know it can't be Rose, she just nipped out about 10 minutes ago because she needed to pick a few items up for my Aunt from town and do some food shopping. I closed my magazine and stuffed the rest of my cream cake in my mouth. I hurried out of the kitchen, I wiped my hands on my new blue dress my Aunt brought me and put the chain on the door. I unlocked the door, opened it slowly and peeped through the gap in the doorway. I frowned slightly when I saw on one there, I sighed to myself and closed the door.

" Hey!" I heard a familiar voice say from outside of the door. " Am I invisible to you? I know I've not seen you for 5 months, but that's rude!"

" I'm sorry A, I didn't see you through the gap..." I replied with a sigh. " I'll be one moment, I need to take the chain off the door..."

I shook my head and smiled to myself as I removed the chain from the door. I opened the door the wide, I was greeted by a smiling A sitting on his bike and Nonie placing her bike down on the cottage's front lawn. I watched Nonie run over to an old tall tree in the middle of the lawn, I gasped when she knocked over one of my Aunt's stone fairy statues and quickly climbed up the tree. She sat down on the highest branch of the tree, she looked down at the faerie statues at the bottom of the tree and took a lollipop from her hoody pocket.

" Sorry!" She yelled.

" It doesn't look broken from where I'm standing, I'll replace it if it's damaged..." I heard A say. " So, do you want to come out for bike ride with us? You'll have to get changed though, I can imagine it being quite tricky riding a bike in a dress. Not that I hate dresses, I just think jeans are better when cycling in the country..."

" What are you doing here?" I asked quietly, I turned my full attention to A and leant against the wall as I crossed my arms." I thought you were not allowed to leave The Wammy House without Watari escorting you to places, not since what happened last year..."

" Rude much, we're here to visit you..." He replied and then frowned slightly at me. " Hey! I'm allowed to go out by myself sometimes, I'll be 13 in October and I'm not alone. I'm with Nonie, we're allowed to go out unescorted if we're in groups or in pairs!"

" Okay, don't get your knickers in a twist..." I giggled.

" Oh you're so funny, I just popped a stitch in my side because you're a right little comedian!" He smirked and gently bumped his bike's wheel against the doorstep. " So, do you what to come for a bike ride or not? We're going to the woods behind your cottage, we plan to hangout there for an hour and throw some stones over the bridge. You should come with us, you look terrible..."

" Oh..." I mumbled.

" I didn't mean it in a bad way, you just look pale and withdrawn! " He said quickly and climbed off his bike. " I'm not saying you look bad or anything, you look fine to me! I mean, oh forget it! I'm waffling..."

" You're silly..." I smiled slightly as I tucked some of my hair behind my ear. " But I can't come out right now, I've got to stay at home until Rose get's back from town..."

" Are you home alone?" He asked.

" Yes, I volunteered to stay at home well she went out..." I replied, I sat down on the doorstep and pulled my knees to my chest. " My Aunt is asleep upstairs in her bedroom, I'm keeping an eye on her until Rose get's back home. I'm afraid to say you've both had a wasted journey, I'm sorry..."

" It's alright, it's doesn't matter!" He smiled. " How's the old firecracker doing anyway? Is she still slaying businessmen with her sharp tongue and killer wit?"

" She's doing okay I guess, she as her days when she get's to sick to get out of bed though..." I replied as I watched Nonie jump down from the tree. " Her lung function is fine for now, but I'm still worried about her. She seems to be having more bad days than good days, I wish I could make her better again..."

" Of course you'll worry about her, she's your Aunt after all..." He sighed, he placed his bike down on the front lawn of the cottage and sat down next to me on the doorstep. " I know it's going to get harder for you, but you've got to be there for your Aunt well you can and make hundreds of good memories with her. I don't remember much about my family anymore, I think that's one of my many regrets because when you're young you don't think about the future. But sometime life can throw you little sparks of hope, but life is full of surprises you know..."

" I know, I'm just waiting for those little sparks of hope you speak about sometimes..." I sighed. " How did you cope when you lost your Mum and Sister? I get so scared sometimes, I don't want to prepare myself for the worse..."

" I don't know, I actually still don't know how I coped..." He answered with a shrug. " I got told by L long ago when I was young to not show my emotions, they can make you weak when you need to be strong for others. But the damn panda detective is full of shit sometimes, I think your emotions can be your most powerful weapon..."

" You shouldn't swear in front of girls, it's bad form..." I said.

" Why not?" He asked.

" Because it's rude..." I replied.

" Well pardon me Miss Elizabeth, I'll remember to not swear in your presence ever again!" He chuckled, he draped his arm around my shoulders and pointed over at Nonie as he shuffled closer toward me. " Alright, I try my best to explain to you how to cope with loss and use your emotions to find your strength for others..."

" Okay..." I nodded.

" Do you see Nonie over there?" He asked quietly. "She found the courage to talk again because she used her emotions, she found her strength through them and remembered that her family wouldn't want her to be sad over their passing. She lost her family in a tragic way, but she found her strength to cope with their passing because she found the key to her emotions. The key is love, if you love your family then you will find your strength for them..."

" You've lost me, I don't understand you..." I sighed.

" No one get's me, I'm a confusing guy..." He smiled. " But you'll find your strength when the time comes, if not then you'll always have my shoulder to lean on..."

" Did love work for Nonie?" I asked.

" I think it did, she's learning to fit back into the world again..." He chuckled. " She's kind of antisocial still though, but I'm working on it..."

" Shut up!" I heard Nonie yell." Don't tell strangers stuff about me!"

" Come on Nonie, I was only giving her advise about over coming emotions..." He smirked, he removed his arm from around me and took a bag of toffee from his jean pocket." I was using you as my example, I think you've over come a lot in your short life..."

" Stop it or I'll tell Watari on you!" She frowned. " Families are meant to be nice to one another, you're being a big jerk right now!"

"And you've got to learn to be more open with people, get in touch with your fellow man and be nice for once!" He sighed and placed his bag of toffee down on my lap." Do you think I like you being a jerk to me? I'm trying my best with you, why do you have to be so difficult?"

" Shut up, Alternative..." She smirked.

" Don't call me that name, I dislike being call Alternative!" He frowned.

" Please don't fight, you need to keep your voices down..." I sighed and grabbed the bag of toffee from my lap." My Aunt is sleeping, she needs her rest..."

" You be quiet!" She snapped.

" Just ignore her, she get's moody sometimes..." He sighed, he took his bag of toffee from my hand and ate one of his toffees. " I think it's female hormones, she get's grumpy if anyone looks at her funny these days. I can't even get her to be quiet, I end up bribing her with lollipops or chocolate bars so she will just leave me alone for 2 minutes of the day!"

" I heard that!" She frowned and crossed her arms. " I hate you and I want my Game Boy back!"

" Sticks and stones blondie!" He smiled as he gently nudged me with his elbow and chuckled." I'll sell her to you for £2, she a bit rough around the edges and mouthy. But she can be alright at times, just put a mouth gag on her and pay her in sweets..."

" I'll pass, I don't think you're allowed to sell children into slave labor..." I smiled, I got up from the doorstep and glanced back inside of the cottage." Would you both like to come in for a refreshments? All I can offer you right now is hot milk or water until Rose gets back home from shopping, but you'd have to be really quiet because of my Aunt..."

" Alternative!" Whined Nonie as she stomped her foot on the ground. " You said we were going biking in the woods, I want to go now!"

" I think we'll have to pass on that offer, I'm sorry..." He sighed.

" It's fine, maybe another time?" I asked.

" Sure, I'll arrange something with Watari for next week..." He replied.

" Good, I'll look forward to your visit..." I smiled.

" I'll remember to leave Nonie behind at The Wammy House next time, I can't cope with her that much anymore..." He replied, he walked over to his bike and picked it up from the lawn. " I think this sibling guidance counselling course is overrated, I need to talk to Watari about it again..."

" Sibling?" I asked. " Have I missed something?"

" I thought I told you, I've got a half-sister now..." He answered with a smile. " I found out last year, you see they do medical examinations on children when they first turn up at The Wammy House. They take blood and tissue samples from them, then set up files on the confidential system. They scan their fingerprints, take hair samples and basically type up all of their family history. It turns out that we share the same Father, she's a year younger than me and a mega pain in the ass though. But I overlook it because she's family, didn't I tell you about this over the phone a few months ago?"

" You didn't tell me any of this, I thought she may have been your girlfriend..." I said as I bit at my bottom lip and glanced down at the ground. " But that's great news, I'm happy that you've got a sister now!"

" You thought she was my girlfriend?" He asked and burst out laughing. " Seriously! Elizabeth, you're crazy! She's my little Sister, you've really got it all wrong..."

" I didn't know, I'm sorry..." I smiled.

" You're disgusting, I don't like you much..." I heard Nonie say. " Can we go now?"

" Alright, my side hurts now..." He chuckled.

I watched A get onto his bike, he signaled to Nonie to get onto her bike as he wheeled his bike down the pathway towards the gate. She quickly punched his arms as he wheeled past her, she got her bike from the lawn and followed after him. I walked down the pathway a few steps behind them, they both walked through the gateway and I watched Nonie jump onto her bike.

" I'll see you next week Elizabeth, don't miss me to much!" He smiled.

" Okay, I hope you both have a pleasant bike ride..." I smiled. " Goodbye Nonie!"

" Whatever!" She said in a sarcastic tone. " Let's go!"

I watched them both cycle off down the lane, I wonder why Nonie was being rude to me before she left? She seemed okay when she arrived here with A, maybe it's because he mentioned stuff about her past when he was trying to explain emotions to me. I closed the gate behind me and walked over to the tree where one of my Aunt's faerie statues lay on the grass. I got onto my knees and carefully stood it back up. I glanced over at the front door when I heard the telephone ring, I quickly got up from the grass and hurried back into the cottage.


	18. Farewell

**Hey, Nukia here!**

**This fanfiction is a side story to Beyond This Love.**

**I don't know if any of my old readers are reading my rewrites anymore, but I'm going to keep going. This will be a sad chapter, that's all I can say without giving any of it away. **

**But thank you for the reviews, favorites and the alerts! Also to the unknown people who read my fanfictions, I promise it will pick up at some point! If you don't like it, then don't read it.**

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter 18!<strong>

My heart is breaking, I don't know how to cope anymore. A few weeks ago everything was fine, I had the most fun birthday and I was allowed to do anything I wanted. So I chose to visit the village museum with my Aunt Thora and Rose. My Aunt had to use her wheelchair though, but we had loads of fun and a nice meal in a fancy hotel. She even paid for us to stay in the hotel for the night, she said because it was my 13th birthday that I should have one night away from home in luxurious surroundings. I will never forget that night for as long as I live, it was truly wonderful.

But now she's gone, My Aunt Thora had passed away last night with me and Rose by her side. I was just reading The Tale of Peter Rabbit to her before she began to wheeze, she had grabbed hold of my hand and squeezed it so tightly. She opened her eyes for a moment and looked at me with a small smile on face, then she closed them. I remember screaming for Rose, she pulled me away from the bed and tried to help my Aunt. But it was too late, she took her last breath at 7:47pm on the 2nd of December 1997.

The doctor had been called, he'd arranged for my Aunt's body to be picked up by the coroner in the morning. I had been sent to my bedroom when the coroners arrived at the cottage, Rose didn't want me to see My Aunt's body being taken from her bedroom. But I heard everything, the wheels of the stretcher on the wooden floor of my Aunt's bedroom and the coroner's footsteps carrying her body down the stairs.

It was now 10am, I had spent most of the night crying into my pillow. I feel so lost, my eyes are sore and I want this pain in my heart to stop. Rose had called into my room a few hours ago, she had brought me a bowl of cereal and hot cup of tea. But I didn't feel like eating right now, I just want to be left alone for the day. I sighed as I rolled over onto my back, I need to use the bathroom. I managed to drag myself out of my bed, I tucked my messy hair behind my ears and got changed into my yellow baggy pajamas. I walked over to my bedroom's door, I opened it slowly and walked out of my room, everything was so silent.

" Elizabeth!" I heard Rose call from downstairs. " Elizabeth my love, will you come downstairs for a moment? I need to speak to you!"

I cleared my throat and told her to give me a moment. I closed my bedroom's door behind me, I went to the bathroom and took care of my business. I left the bathroom and made my way down the stairs, I walked into the living room and stopped dead when I saw Watari sitting on the sofa. He gave me a smile as he got up from the sofa, he picked his hat up from the coffee table and nodded to Rose. I watched him walk over to me, he took hold of my hands and looked down at me with smile on his face.

" My condolences my dear, you Aunt was an inspiring women and she will be missed dearly in the Winchester community. Her generosity will never be forgotten, you should be very proud of your Aunt's achievements... " He said as he let go of my hands and looked over at Rose. " I shall let myself out, I will call in on you in the next few days. If you need anything in the mean time then just ring me, I will keep in touch over the funeral arrangements as well..."

" Thank you Mr Wammy..." Smiled Rose.

Watari gently touched my arm before he left the living room, I heard the front door of the cottage close from the hallway and I watched Rose get up from the sofa. She placed a blue china teacup down on a silver tray, she picked the tray up from the coffee table and walked over to the doorway of the living room. She stopped in front of me, she cupped the side of my face with her hand and smiled down at me.

" Come my love, let's get you something hot to drink and then we can have a little chat..." She said in a soft tone. " We need to discuss a few things, I have something I need to show you as well..."

" What did Watari want?" I asked.

" He came to visit us, but you were asleep when he arrived here..." She replied, she removed her hand from my cheek and walked out of the living room as she continued to talk to me. " Come on my dear, come and take a seat in the kitchen well I make you some breakfast!"

I sighed and followed Rose to the kitchen, I wonder what we need to talk about? I don't really feel like talking much right now, I sat down on a chair at the kitchen table and rubbed at my eyes. I listened to Rose moving around the kitchen, everything sounded so different now without my Aunt around. I looked over at the kitchen counter when I heard a popping sound, the smell of toast filled the room and I felt my stomach rumble.

" Here we go, something to warm you up..." Smiled Rose as she placed a hot mug of tea down in front of me. " I've got some bacon in the fridge with your name written all over it, I think you need a proper British fry-up to fill your stomach up for the morning. We've got a busy morning ahead of us, so much to do and so little time to do it in!"

" I don't think I can face a fry-up, can I just have some toast instead please?" I asked.

" Of course, you can have anything you want..." She replied and walked over to the counter as she wiped her hands on her blue apron. " You've got to keep your strength up, we've got busy days ahead of us. We need to start sorting out your Aunt's bedroom, also go through funeral arrangements she wrote and I've got to ring some friends of your Aunt's in the village. I also need to find the deeds for the cottage, your Aunt kept so many documents for different things it will take me hours to go through all of her files!"

" Can't I just hide from the world instead?" I asked. " I don't feel like facing the world today, I just want to sit in my room and be left alone forever!"

" I know my dear, but you've got to be strong for me too..." She replied. " I've worked for Miss Havisham for over 14 years, she may have been stern and impolite at times. But I came to think of her as my friend and not an employer, I will miss her too..."

" You did?" I asked.

" Yes, before you moved here would take tea together and play checkers in the evenings..." She answered. " Then you came to live with us and it got busy at times, but we always found a quiet moment at the end of the day to talk..."

I looked over at Rose and watched her buttering the toast, she was right. I'm being selfish, I've been thinking about my own feelings and no one else's. I've got to be strong, I guess this is what A meant when he told me to use my emotions. I need to support Rose and pull myself together, my Aunt wouldn't want me wallowing in my own self pity. I wrapped both of my hands around my hot mug of tea, I chewed at my bottom lip and picked my mug up from the table.

" Rose, what will happen to me now?" I asked and took a sip of my tea as I looked over at her. " Will you stay here with me and look after me until I'm old enough to take care of myself? I know you were my Aunt's housekeeper and carer, but will you be mine now?"

" That's what I need to talk to you about Elizabeth, that's why Mr Wammy was here..." She replied." I don't know if you will like what I'm about to tell you, but your Aunt arranged for you to be sent to The Wammy House after her death. She had written a will and gave a copy of it to Mr Wammy for safe keeping, he's given me a copy of it too if you would like to read it. It seems that Miss Havisham as sorted everything out for your future, you're a very lucky girl..."

" Can I live with you instead?" I asked. " I promise I will be good for you, I'll do anything you want and I'll wash all the dishes each night before I go to bed! I don't want to go there, not after what happened there last year..."

" It won't be that bad, you've got friends at The Wammy House and I'll just be a phone call away if you need me..." She replied, she walked over to the table and placed a plate of buttered toast down in front of me." You'll be educated there too, I bet you'll be settled in there before you know it..."

" Please can I live with you, I'm to scared to live there..." I sighed.

" I really wish you could Elizabeth, I would love for you to come and live with me..." She smiled and sat down at the table." But we're not related, I'm to old to adopt you and have no means to support the both of us. I'll make sure we stay in touch, I'll even come to visit you seeing as I sometimes help out with the catering in the orphanage's kitchen for special business events. You'll get sick of seeing me in the end, you'll be running from me each time I call your name..."

" I doubt it..." I said with a soft laugh.

" Eat up, we've got a busy day a head of us..." She smiled as she brushed some of my hair behind my ear. " You can help me sort through your Aunt's study if you like, we may find something interesting for you to keep or take with you to The Wammy House. I always remember you as a little girl wanting to go in your Aunt's study to look at all of her books, but she would never let you touch any of them. Now you've got your chance, would you like to choose a few books to keep?"

" Am I allowed to do that?" I asked.

" Of course, most of the books will be sent to charities anyway..." She replied.

" Rose, may I read my Aunt's will please?" I asked.

" Of course, you've got a right to read it..." She replied.

I watched Rose take an envelope from her apron pocket, she placed the envelope down on the table and got up from the chair. She told me she was going to start sorting my Aunt's study out, there was a lot of filing cabinets in the study from what I remember. She also had to clean My Aunt's bedroom too, some people from the hospital were coming by later to pick up the ventilator machine and a few other bits of hospital equipment. I opened the up the envelope, I took the folded up letter from it and began to read it quietly to myself.

" Being of sound mind and body, I Thora Havisham hereby bequeath my vast fortune and all my earthly possessions to My Great Niece, Elizabeth Mirabella Mayhem..." I said as my eyes grew wide and I continued to read the letter. " She will receive my fortune and my cottage on her 18th birthday and not before, until then she shall attend the school of my choice which will be listed below..."

I looked up from the letter and glanced around the kitchen, I can't believe my Aunt Thora as left me her cottage. Even more her vast fortune, it feels like I'm in a weird dream. I looked back down at the letter again, I continued to read the rest of it and carefully put it back in the envelope when I had finished reading it. My Aunt had also left Rose over £30,000 for all the years she had worked for her, at least she will have some means of support until she finds more work. I picked a slice of toast up from the plate in front of me, I took a small bite of it and got up from the chair at the table. I walked over to the back door of the kitchen, I opened the door and stepped out into the garden.

I shivered as I felt the cold of the stone pathway under my bare feet, I walked down the pathway and stopped by wooden bench. I sat down on the bench as I took a deep breath of frosty morning air and exhaled. I looked up at the sky as I took another bite of my toast, I watched a few birds fly over the cottage and tucked some of my hair behind my ear. I hope my Aunt is with my Mum and Grandmother, I know they'll take good care of her until I meet her again one day in heaven.

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><p>Today was the day of my Aunt Thora's funeral, she had arranged a very small gathering of her close friends and business partners at a church called St John the Baptist Church in the village. The service wasn't very long, there were a few hymns and prayers said through out the service by the vicar. She was buried in her family plot on the church's grounds with her Mother and Father, I didn't even know that my family had a family plot until then. I had made a little bouquet of flowers from the cottage's garden to lay on my Aunt's grave, I thought it would be a nice idea because she loved her garden very much. Not many flowers were in bloom in the winter months, but I found some lavenders, winter roses and fairy primroses growing near the back of the garden. There was no wake after the funeral, all the guests just left quietly after she was buried.<p>

Watari had driven me and Rose back to the cottage, he was going to come back later to pick me up. I needed to finish packing my belongings, I wasn't really sure what I would be allowed to take with me. I had packed all of my clothes yesterday, now I just need to decide what else I needed to take with me. I was given a cardboard box, it was medium-sized and Rose told me to put my personal belongs in it.

I had put all of my photo albums, my photographs I kept on my wall near my bed and my jewelry box in the cardboard box so far. I decided to take a walk around the cottage to see if there was anything small I could take with me as a keep sake, I found some little dormouse figures and a photograph of My Aunt with my Grandmother when they little girls. I walked back to my bedroom, I wrapped the figures in some newspaper and placed them in the cardboard box with the photo frame. I gathered a few more of my things, I placed them in the box and sellotaped it up. I wrote my initials on the side of it with a black marker-pen, I carried the box downstairs and placed it down near the front door. I took my red coat from the coat peg, I put it on and walked into the kitchen. I stood quietly in the middle of the kitchen, it feels funny knowing that I won't be having breakfast in here anymore or having conversations with Rose well I helped her to prepare lunch. The kitchen always felt like the heart of cottage, I'm going to miss it.

" Have you nearly finished?" I heard Rose say from behind me. " Mr Wammy said he would be here by 6pm, you need to make sure everything you want to take with you is packed and ready to go..."

" I just need to bring my bags down now, then I'll be ready to go..." I replied and turned around to face her. " What will happened to the rest of my Aunt's belongings like the furniture and figurines? Will they be sold or thrown away?"

" Most of your Aunt's belongings will be going to charities, but everything you see in this cottage belongs to you..." She answered with a smile. " The furniture will be put into storage and taken care of until you need it, the cottage with be checked every so many months so it can be maintained for when you decide to live here again. You don't have to worry about a thing, everything is being managed for you until you're 18..."

" What about the garden?" I asked. " Who will tend to it when I'm gone? I don't want it to be left to die, I want it to be taken care of for my Aunt because she loved her garden dearly!"

" Sshh my dear, everything will be fine..." She replied, she walked over to me and took hold of my hands. " You don't have to worry about the cottage, I will come every so often to check on it and make sure everything is in order. But for now, you've got to look ahead and look to your future. That's what your Aunt would have wanted, she would want you to get a good career and maybe have a family someday..."

" I don't want a family, you have to share your stuff with them..." I said.

" Oh my dear, I'm going to miss you!" She laughed.

" I'm going to miss you too, can I come and visit you soon?" I asked.

" Of course, I would love you to come and visit me..." She smiled, she let go of my hands and then pulled me into a hug." I'll be living about 30 minutes away from The Wammy House in a little cottage I brought with the money your Aunt left me in her will, I'm thinking of turning it into a little country tea house. I'm going to be a boss for change, what do you think that?"

" That sounds amazing, it will be the best tea house in town!" I replied and pulled myself away from her. " I should get my bags from my bedroom now, it's nearly 6pm. I won't be a moment, then I can take one last look around the cottage before I leave..."

" Okay my dear, if you need me I'll be in the living room packing the last of the figures..." She smiled. " Go on, you don't want to keep Mr Wammy waiting for you. I know what you're like after all of these years we've lived under the same roof, your moments can turn into minutes..."

I gave Rose a smile and left the kitchen. I hurried up the stairs, I got my bags from my bedroom and took one last look around it. I closed the door behind, I walked across the landing and entered my Aunt's bedroom. The hospital had picked up the machinery earlier, the room was now tidy and most of my Aunt's belongings were in boxes. I looked over at her dressing table, everything she used in her day-to-day life was still laid-out on her dresser. I noticed a few bracelets she use to wear on it, I walked over dresser and picked them up. I put them on my left wrist and looked over my shoulder when I heard a knocking noise coming from downstairs, Watari must be here. I took a bottle of my Aunt's favorite perfume from her dressing table, I hurried out of the room and stopped at the top of the stairs.

I watched Rose open the door, Mr Wammy took his hat of as she greeted him. She invited him inside of the cottage, he walked into the hallway and smiled to me as I walked down the stairs to meet him. He picked my box up from the floor, he told me to come out to his car when I was ready. I watched him walk through the doorway, I turned to face Rose and placed my bags down on the floor. She wrapped her arms around me, I snuggle my face into her shoulder and sighed as I hugged her back.

" Will you be okay here by yourself tonight?" I asked.

" I'll be fine, one of your Aunt's old friends is coming over in a while to keep my company..." She replied and pulled me away from her. " I'll call you in the morning to check up on you, Mr Wammy said he would put a telephone in your room for your personal needs..."

" Do you have the number to that telephone?" I asked.

" Yes, I've got it written in my phone book..." She replied, she cupped my face with her hands and softly kissed my forehead. " You better take care of yourself and remember to wash behind your ears, you'll be growing mushrooms behind them if you don't!"

" Also clean my teeth and make my bed each morning, I know the rules already..." I smiled and held my wrist in front of Rose's face. " I took these bracelets from My Aunt's bedroom, I hope it was okay for me to take them..."

" Of course, I was going to give them to you before you left anyway..." She smiled, she uncupped my face and placed her hand on my arm. " You better get going, it will be your bedtime soon. Do you have everything you need for now?"

" Yes..." I nodded.

" Good, so I guess this is goodbye for now my dear..." She replied.

" I guess so, I'm going to miss you so much!" I said as my bottom lip began to tremble and I hugged her again. " I wish I could stay with you, but I know it's not going to happen. The minute I turn 18, I'm going to hire you to be my housekeeper and we'll look after the cottage together like a family!"

" Be brave little one, we'll be in touch soon..." She gently said and pulled me away from her. " I bet Mr Wammy is getting cold waiting in his car for you, you better hurry so he can get back to his warm office!"

" Okay, I'll see you really soon..." I said quietly.

I kissed Rose on her cheek, I picked my bags up from the floor and hurried out of the cottage. I was greeted by Watari at the gate, he took my bags from me and I got into the back of his car. I looked out of the window of the car, I waved to Rose from as I wiped some tears away from my cheek and gave her smile. I watched her close the cottage's front door, I took one last look at the cottage and placed my hand on the window. I'm going to miss my old home, but I will return to it someday and live out the rest of days there.


	19. Pranks

**Hey, Nukia here!**

**This fanfiction is a side story to Beyond This Love.**

**I don't know if any of my old readers are reading my rewrites anymore, but I'm going to keep going. I thought I'd say Nonie belongs to a friend of mine on , we were writing two separate fanfictions and we use to crossover into each others fanfics with our OCs. She's given me permission to use her OCs, so she will be credited now and again when they appear in my fanfiction. This chapter is just random, it's crazy and long!**

**But thank you for the reviews, favorites and the alerts! Also to the unknown people who read my fanfictions, I promise it will pick up at some point! If you don't like it, then don't read it. **

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter 19!<strong>

I've lived at The Wammy House for over 3 week now, it was hard settling in at first and getting use to my new surroundings. Everything was new and different, also the lack of freedom was frustrating. Apparently there's different rules for different students so Mr Ruvie told me when I asked him if I could visit Rose, I don't like him at all and I know a few other students dislike him too. He's Watari's manager of the orphanage when Watari is not around, he's stern with some of the student and makes their life's hell.

The class lessons are hard here too, I feel so stupid in some of the classes and I have to ask the teachers for help. The stuff the students are learning is all new to me, I've got no idea what to do in forensic science or criminology class. They do have normal lessons here to like mathematics and literacy, they even have foreign language classes which all the students must take. I'm terrible at foreign language class, I'm beginning to think I'm the dumbest child in the orphanage. The only things I'm good at is forensic art and prosthetic make up, I get a lot of praise from the teacher who runs those classes. I got told I may have a future in forensic art for law enforcement's if I continued improving my skills, but I don't want to follow that path.

It's the 23rd of December now, the lessons have finished for the week so the children could relax and enjoy the Christmas holiday. I'm not really sure how Christmas works in The Wammy House though, do they get gifts or have Christmas parties or even have a Christmas lunch? I guess I'll have to find out, but for now I've got to help out with the Christmas decorations. All of the students have been given different tasks, some students were putting up paper streamers in the corridors and others were helping to decorate Christmas trees around the building. I've been paired up with Nonie, we're decorating the staircase in the main hallway of the orphanage.

We'd collected a big box of decorations from the assembly hall, there were a few different coloured baubles, plastic holly leaves and red coloured tinsel in the box. We both decided to each take a side of the staircase, we shared the decorations out between us and chose which side of the staircase we wanted to decorate. We both began to decorate the staircase's banisters, I looked over at Nonie and watched her hanging some of the tinsel under the handrail of the banister.

" And what are you looking at?" She asked.

" Nothing!" I replied and quickly turned away from her as I picked some tinsel up from the step I was sitting on. " I was just checking on what style you were decorating the banisters, I thought it would be better if they matched each other..."

" So you're copying off me?" She asked.

" No, I just didn't want the banisters to be mismatched..." I replied as I began to hang the tinsel from the handrail. " I've never done this before, we didn't really have tinsel at Christmas in my Aunt's cottage..."

" Why not?" She asked.

" I don't know, My Aunt was very set in her ways and never had tinsel on her Christmas trees when she was young or old..." I answered and looked over at her. " We use to make popcorn and then thread them on string to hang on the tree, she was very old-fashioned when it came to Christmas. We didn't even have Santa toys or flashing lights on the tree, just candles and holly across the top of the fireplace..."

" That sounds pretty cool in an odd way, what kind of popcorn did you use?" She asked.

" We dipped it in homemade toffee, I use to eat some from the tree when my Aunt's housekeeper wasn't looking..." I smiled to myself as I picked a green bauble up from the step and hung it on the tinsel. " It was nice, I'm guessing they don't do that kind of stuff around here?"

" No, if they made toffee popcorn tinsel then A would most probably eat all the popcorn from the trees!" She laughed and looked over at me. " My brother told me about your Aunt, I'm sorry that she died. But I don't understand why you're here, you're not like us..."

" Not like you how?" I asked.

" You're not smart for a start, there's nothing special about you at all..." She replied as she turned away from me and continued to hang the tinsel from the handrail. " Is it because you've got money, am I right? I know money can talk volumes that the greedy can only hear, I think you're here because you've got money..."

" I know I'm not smart, my Aunt arranged for me to stay here until I turn 18..." I sighed. " I don't think it's as anything to do with my inheritance, she was friends with Mr Wammy for many years and donated loads of her money to many charities. She even wrote in her will that she wanted to give some of her personal books to reading charities, she was a good woman even if she was stern with me at times and made me take elocution lessons..."

" You took elocution lessons?" She asked, she looked back over at me and smirked. " God, poor you! But your Aunt does sound charitable, I like people who give to the needy. But you need to change to fit in here, the way you dress for a start is terrible and outdated!"

I looked down at the light purple dress I was wearing, I didn't see anything wrong with it. It wasn't frilly or to girly, it was plan with a black belt around my waist. I looked back over at Nonie as she got up from the step, she was wearing a red devil hoody with blue jeans and wore black sneakers on her feet. She walked along the step towards me, she stopped next to me and crouched beside me.

" I want to do a makeover on you, I'll help you to fit in here..." She smiled slightly and held her hand towards me. " But you've got to promise me something first, do we have a deal?"

" What kind of promises and deals?" I asked.

" I want you stop trying to steal my brother away from me, he's my family and not yours!" She replied with a frown. " All he does is hang around with you since you moved here, he never as time for me anymore and I want him back!"

" I'm not stealing brother away from you, he's just being supportive..." I answered, I shuffled along the step away from her and leant my shoulder against the banister." Is that why you keep being rude to me sometimes? You can hang around with us too, I don't have a problem with you being around us. Have you tried talking to him?"

" I've tried everything to get his attention, but he tells me to stop bugging him!" She answered as she clenched her hand." That's why I want to help you, then you'll have to help me in return. I'll help you fit in, then you can help me get my brother to notice me again. So, do we have a deal after I've explained my predicament to you?"

" I guess so, I'll try my best to help you then..." I answered.

" Good!" She smiled as she jumped up from the step. " I'm glad we've got that straight, now come with me and I'll find you something more fashionable to wear, can I style your hair too?"

" But we're meant to be decorating the banisters, won't we get into trouble with Mr Ruvie?" I asked.

" Nah, we can say we went to the bathroom. He never questions girls when they say that, you just give him the monthly excuse and he's fine with it..." She replied, she yanked me up from the step by my arm and grabbed hold of my hand. " Come on, come to the clothes storeroom with me and I'll show you what they've got there! It's a good place to find your own style, but you'd have to leave your dress behind for a trade... "

I sighed to myself as Nonie led me down the staircase, what have I gotten myself into? But at least I know why she's being rude to me now, she's just scared that I'm taking her brother away from her. I don't have a clue why she would think I would do something like that, I would never dream of taking anyone's family away from them. She stopped me outside of a door labelled clothes storeroom, she opened the door and hurried me inside. I looked around the room and smiled to myself, this room was amazing. There was all kinds of different clothes in here, I felt Nonie tap my shoulder as she walked past me and I followed her down one of the aisle.

" Where did all these clothes come from?" I asked as I stopped by a rail of dress and took a look through them. " They're amazing, are they all donated clothes?"

" Yeah, they come from clothes companies or clothes manufacturers..." She answered and took a straw hat from a cardboard box. " They send them to us instead of throwing them away or they send us out of season stock, we get sent a lot of cool stuff though. Let me choose something for you to try on, have you ever wore a skirt before?"

" My Aunt wouldn't allow me to wear skirts, they're not ladylike..." I replied, I turned around to face Nonie and watched her run over to a rail full of different coloured skirts." Will Watari mind me trading my clothes? I have a lot of clothes of my own already, it feels wrong trading them in for new ones..."

" You're to innocent, don't you know how to have fun?" She asked, she took a red coloured skirt from the rail and smiled at me as she held it towards me. " Try this one on! I'll get you a black t-shirt or maybe a long-sleeved shirt to go with it! This will be so much fun, I never get to do things like this with friends!"

" We're friends now?" I asked.

" Yeah, I think we're friends now..." She replied.

I watched Nonie hurry over to another clothes-rail, she took a black long-sleeved shirt from the rail and took the shirt from it's wooden coat-hanger. She beckon me to follow her with her hand, she lead me to a changing room area and pushed me inside one of the cubicles. She hung the skirt on a coat-peg inside the cubicle, she threw the shirt over my shoulder and drew the changing room's green curtain.

" Get changed, I'll find you some boots to wear!" I heard her say from behind the curtain. "What size shoes do you take?"

" I'm a size 5 in shoes, but I think my feet may have grown since I last got them measured at the shoe shop..." I answered. " So, maybe a size 6!"

" Okay, I'll take a look around well you're getting changed!" She yelled.

I sighed to myself as I looked at my reflection in the mirror, I pulled the shirt away from my shoulder and placed it down on the floor. I undid my belt on my dress, I quickly took my dress off and placed it down on the floor. I put the black shirt on and then the red skirt. I took a look at myself in the mirror and bit at my bottom lip as I ran my hands down my hips, I look so grown up. The skirt was just below my knee and the shirt was tightly fitted, I don't think this dress style is me.

" How does it look?" I heard Nonie ask from behind the curtain. " Do the clothes fit you? Can I see?"

" Sure, you can come in!" I replied

I heard the curtain of the cubicle get drawn back, I turned around to face Nonie and cupped my hands behind my back. I watched as she looked me up and down, she then held a pair of black ankle boots towards me with a smile on her face. I took the boots from her, I quickly put them on and walked out of the changing room.

" Now it's time for me to do your hair!" She said as smiled sweetly at me and took a hair-bobble from her hoody pocket. " Let's see, I think I'll tie your hair up. Yeah, I like that idea..."

Nonie quickly rushed behind me, she took my black headband from my hair and threw it across the room. She quickly tied my hair up into a ponytail, she gently pushed me out of her way and hurried into the changing room. She picked my dress up from the floor, she hung it on a coat-hanger and barged past me.

" Those clothes really do suit you, I think we should show A your makeover right away!" She smiled and hung my dress on one of the clothes-rails. " I'll go and find him, I can't wait for him to see you now!"

" Well, okay then..." I said quietly.

" I want you to count to a hundred and then come out of the room when I knock on the door, have you got that?" She asked with a smirk. " We'll be waiting for you outside, I'll be quick!"

I watch Nonie leave the room, I begin to count to a hundred in my head and walked over to my headband. I picked it up from the floor, I carefully put it in my hair and sighed to myself. I wonder why Nonie wants A to see my makeover so badly? I looked over at the room's door when I heard someone knocking on it, I walked over to the door and opened it wide.

" Surprise!" I heard Nonie yell. " Come out and play!"

Nonie quickly grabbed hold of my hand, she pulled me out of the room and pushed me into someone. I quickly said sorry, I stepped away from the person and rubbed the side on my face. I quickly looked over a Nonie, she had her arms crossed with a big smirk on her face. Did she just push me into someone on purpose? I looked over at the person and found out it was actually A she had pushed me into, he didn't look amused at all.

" What do you think?" I heard Nonie say as she walked past me. " She looks good, right? We were playing makeovers, I think she needed an upgrade from her normally dull dress style..."

" Why does she have mistletoe in her hair?" He asked.

" I don't know, it looks festive to me..." She replied.

" I have mistletoe in my hair?!" I asked and put my hands on head. " Is that what's digging in the back my head?"

" Yeah, keep still and I'll get it out for you..." He replied.

" Thank you, why did you do that Nonie?" I asked.

" I don't know, it seemed funny at the time..." She replied in a sarcastic tone. " I thought it would look festive in your hair, tis the season after all!"

" Ignore her, she can be childish at times..." He smiled and took the mistletoe from my hair." She needs to grow up, but can I ask why you've let her give you a makeover?"

" It sounded fun, change can be good at times..." I replied, I looked over at Nonie and saw her frowning at me." I guess you could call it's a clothes experiment, but no harm was done. We had nice time, it was nice spending some time with your sister..."

" Oh right, I guess clothes experiments are fine if you fancy a change..." He said as he gently grabbed hold of Nonie's arm and looked down at her. " If you'd excuse us SJ, I need a quick word with my little sister..."

I watched A lead Nonie along the corridor by her arm, they disappeared around a corner and I heard A raise his voice at her. I leant back against the wall, I looked up at the ceiling of the corridor and sighed to myself. I looked along the corridor when I heard someone humming a Christmas song, I saw Backup walking along the corridor with a Santa toy dragging on the floor behind him. I stood up straight as he stopped near me, I looked down at the Santa toy on the floor and saw tinsel wrapped around its neck. I looked up from the toy and stared at Backup, he can be really strange at times.

" What are you doing?" I asked.

" I'm taking Santa Claus for a walk, I plan to hang him outside of Mr Ruvie's office..." He replied with a smirk. " He will not find it amusing, but I on the other hand will find it hilarious. May I inquire why you're dressed like a tramp?"

" A tramp?" I asked.

" Yes, just humor me with an explanation..." He replied.

" Nonie gave me a makeover, but this dress style is not me..." I sighed and cupped my hands behind my back." I may go and get changed back into my clothes, I don't think A liked it. Also Nonie put mistletoe in my hair, I'm not really sure why she did that though..."

" Alternative dislike girls who dress in clothes like you're wearing, I think you've been pranked by Nonie. She really doesn't like you, but she doesn't know that you know that now..." He chuckled as he pulled the Santa toy up from the floor by the tinsel and smirked. " She think's you're trying to steal her sibling away from her, she get's very possessive at times over him. He's the only family she as left in this world, her Mother and Grandmother both died in a plane crash a few years ago. Many people died on that flight, she was one of the 14 survivors who survived that horrific plane disaster..."

" How do you know all of this?" I asked.

" I've read most of the personal files of the students who live at the orphanage in secret, I like learning about my fellow students..." He replied. " But I overheard most of what Alternative and Nonie were talking about in the corridor when I passed them, she confessed everything to him. If I were you, I'd stay away from her and watch your back. I believe she may have it in for you, but if you like I'll watch your back from a distance. I'll be like your shadow, you wouldn't even know I was there..."

" So she gave me a makeover to make A hate me?" I asked, I looked down at the clothes I was wearing and frowned slightly. " I feel so stupid now, she said we were friends..."

" Yes, cunning isn't she?" He smirked and dropped the Santa toy on the floor. " I don't trust her at all, she's like me in many ways. But for now I must say goodbye, I need to go and hang Santa Claus outside of Mr Ruvie's office for his little surprise. I do enjoy Christmas, it's full of mischief and joy. Quite delightful, don't you think?"

" I guess..." I replied.

I watched Backup turn away from me, he began to walk down the corridor with the Santa toy following behind him as he hummed. I took the hair-bobble from my hair and let it fall around my shoulders, I'm going to get changed back into my old clothes now. I hurried back into the clothes storeroom, I found my dress hanging on the dress rail and rushed into the changing room. I quickly got changed back into my purple dress, I fastened my belt around my waist and drew the curtain of the changing room back. I jumped when I saw A sitting down by a box of hats, he gave me a smile and got up from the floor.

" I'm here to say sorry on the behalf of my sister, she can be jerk at times..." He said. " She's gone back to the staircase to finish decorating it, so you can join her when you feel like it or you could be cruel and let her decorate it all by herself for her punishment..."

" It doesn't matter, I forgive her..." I said quietly as I put the shirt back on its coat-hanger." I understand why she did it, she just wants to spend more time with you. You have spent a lot of time with me lately since I moved here, you need to make some time for your sister too..."

" You're to understanding and forgiving, but I get what you're saying..." He smiled. " But Nonie as to learn, I've got a friend who need me right now. I think she's just a jealous little kid, she's been use to getting all of my attention for months and now she as to learn to share me with others. There's enough of me to go around, it's not my problem if I'm in high demand sometimes around here!"

" Big head!" I giggled and picked the red skirt up from the floor." But you should make some time for your sister though, I'll be okay alone for a few hours. Why don't you take her to the games room later, you could plays some Super Mario Bros with her or play board games or watch some television..."

" But I'd feel guilty leaving you all by yourself, I promised Watari I would look out for you well you stayed with us..."He sighed." I'll ask Nonie if she wants to hangout later in the games room then, but for now I'm hanging with you..."

" Okay..." I nodded.

" Come on, I'll protect you from Nonie well you decorate the rest of the staircase..." He said as he ran his fingers through his blonde shaggy hair. " I was meant to be helping Backup decorate the windows in the corridor, but he ended up disappearing on me..."

" I saw him, he was going to Mr Ruvie's office..." I smiled. " He had a Santa toy with him, he was going to hang it outside of his office for a joke I think. He said he walked past you and Nonie in the corridor well you were talking, didn't you see him?"

" You're kidding me?!" He asked with a hint of surprise in his voice. " I didn't see him, but I need to see this! Do you want to see Backup pranking Roger?"

" Sure, it sounds fun..." I replied.

I hung the skirt and the shirt back on the clothes-rails. I left the clothes storeroom with A, we hurried down the corridor and turned into another corridor. There was a few children hanging baubles on a giant Christmas tree near the main entrance of The Wammy House, I stopped dead and admired it. It was beautiful, it reminded me of the Christmas tree they have in the town square at Christmas in the village. I heard A call my name, I looked down the corridor and quickly followed after him.

" Come on daydreamer, you can check the tree out later..." He said.

" Is Christmas always like this here at The Wammy House?" I asked.

" Yeah..." He replied as we turned into another corridor. " You should see Christmas morning, now that's when the true celebrations begin! We get up at 9am, have a late breakfast and then sing Christmas carols until Lunch time. After Lunch, we just hangout and play games until late supper..."

" That sounds quite delightful!" I smiled.

" I guess it's delightful as you put it, but this year I'll have more family around me..." He said, he stopped me near a wooden bench and pointed down the corridor. " I've just seen Backup, he just disappeared down that corridor. That's where Roger's office is located, he should be back in a moment to hide in this corridor..."

We continued to walk down the corridor, we saw Backup hurry around the corner and he leaned back against the wall as he chuckled. A stopped next to him, I walked past them both and took a look down the corridor. I saw the Santa toy hanging from some tinsel in front of the door, why do people around here like pranking each other? I felt myself being pulled by my waist back into the other corridor, I looked over at Backup and watched him peep his head around the corner.

" Did we miss it?" I heard A ask. " Say we didn't miss it, I love it when Roger get's worked up over pranks!"

" No my dear Alternative, I'm still waiting for him to arrive..." Answered B as he looked over his shoulder at us. " Did she tell you about my prank? Hopefully no one overheard it or it may get ruined by tell tales, then I would have to punish your little friend..."

" Touch her and I'll break your fingers!" I heard A say from behind me." You know what Watari told you about punishing others, he'll come down on you like a ton of bricks the next time you do it!"

" It seems like I've hit a cord, how interesting..." Smirked B as he turned his attention away from us. " I think we should test SJ courage, what do you say?"

" Test my courage how?" I asked.

" I want you to fasten mistletoe above the Santa Claus toy's head, I think Mr Ruvie deserves a Christmas kiss this year..." Replied B with a chuckled. " What do you say? Will you take part in my prank? It's Christmas after all, maybe it will break your innocent streak..."

" I don't know, I don't want to get into trouble..." I replied and removed A's hands from my waist." What if I got caught? I'd get scolded by Watari, I promised Rose I would be good well I lived here under his care..."

" It's fine SJ, you don't have to do it..." I heard A say from behind me. " I'll do it, I want to see Roger's face when he see's old Saint Nick waiting for some Christmas kisses. I bet it will be brilliant!"

" That's the spirit, I believe you've got some mistletoe in your jean pocket from earlier..." Said B.

" How did you know that?" Asked A, he took the mistletoe from his pocket and held it over Backup's head. " Hey B, pucker up for A!"

I laughed and covered up my mouth as I watched Backup shoo A's hand away from above his head with a frown on his face. There is one new thing I've learned about A since I moved here, he likes making fun of Backup. But I like being around him, he's fun to be with when he's happy. I removed my hands from my mouth, I quickly tied my hair up into a bun and chewed at my bottom lip.

" Alright Backup, you're need to be my lookout well I fasten this mistletoe on the tinsel above the Santa toy's head..." Said A as he stepped into the other corridor. " If you see Roger I want you to whistle, have you got that?"

" Of course, you can trust me..." Smirked B.

" I find that hard to believe for some reason, I don't trust you at all..." Smiled A. " SJ, you can be my lookout instead. The moment you see Roger I want you to whistle, have you got that?"

" I can't whistle, I'm sorry..." I replied.

" Really?" Asked A.

" You're wasting time, hurry up!" Frowned B.

" Alright, I'm going to just have to chance it then..." Sighed A, he placed his hand on Backup's shoulder and pulled dramatic face. " If I get caught, you've got to promise me that you'll stay out of my stuff. Don't look under my bed or eat my toffee, I shall return at some point..."

" I promise you nothing, I hope Mr Ruvie gives you the cane..." Chuckled B.

" No, let me do it!" I frowned and grabbed hold of A's arm. " I will to do it instead! You'll end up getting caught, I can use the monthly excuse on Mr Ruvie because I'm a girl and I hear he doesn't question girls when they use that excuse!"

" What?" Asked A." What are you talking about?"

" Please let me do it, I don't want you to get the cane!" I replied.

" She's weird, I like weird..." Smirked B.

" No SJ, I'm going to do it..." Sighed A." Look what you've done now B, you've made her think we get the cane now for bad behavior..."

" My bad..." Smirked B.

I snatched the mistletoe from A's hand, I ran along the corridor to Mr Ruvie's office and stopped in front of it. I looked back along the corridor, I saw A beckoning me to come back to him with his hands and Backup laughing hysterically as he leaned back against the wall. I bit at my bottom lip as I stood on my tip toes and carefully began to tie the mistletoe on the tinsel.

" You! What do you think you're doing young lady!" I heard someone yell angrily from along the corridor." Take that down immediately and sit on the bench outside of my office!"

I gasped as I looked the other way down the corridor, I saw Mr Ruvie making his way along the corridor with Mr Wammy walking next to him. I dropped the mistletoe on the floor and looked up at the Santa toy, I'm going to get into so much trouble over this stupid prank. I looked back along the corridor, I saw Backup running away down the corridor and A gently banging his forehead against the wall. I took the Santa toy down from the doorway, I sat down on the bench across from Mr Ruvie's office and waited for him.


	20. Wammy House Classes

**Hey, Nukia here!**

**This fanfiction is a side story to Beyond This Love.**

**I don't know if any of my old readers are reading my rewrites anymore, but I'm going to keep going. This is another random chapter, I like random chapters. I hope they're not boring, I like having fun chapters and then tragic ones. But in this chapter it's based around classes the characters may take at The Wammy House, it's a thought. I looked up most of the information I used in this chapter online. **

**But thank you for the reviews, favorites and the alerts! Also to the unknown people who read my fanfictions, I promise it will pick up at some point! If you don't like it, then don't read it.**

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><p><strong>Chapter 20!<strong>

Christmas had gone and the new year had passed, it was my first seasonal holiday I had spent without my Aunt and Rose around. It was hard waking up without them around on Christmas morning, but I kind of enjoyed the holiday with the children at the The Wammy House. Watari had given all the children Christmas presents, he's a very kind and thoughtful man. He had called me to one side on Christmas morning, he gave me a little box which contended my Mum's butterfly necklace. My Aunt Thora had given it to him for safe keeping, he told me that I had delivered the necklace to the orphanage the year before with a copy of my Aunt's will. She must have known she didn't have long left, she had arranged everything in secret without me knowing.

I grabbed my biology and chemistry books from my bed, the first lesson of the day begins at 9:30am. I hung my bag over my shoulder as I left my room and made my way down the corridor, the science lab was on the other side of the building. I met A and Nonie at the bottom of the staircase in the main hallway, we always walk to class together on Monday mornings. Nonie had calmed down a bit since the prank she pulled on my last year, she's even been nice to me on the odd occasion since then. I think she's nice to me because A is with us both sometimes, I'm lucky I don't have to be alone with her because she kind of scares me. I've caught her on the odd occasion staring at me in lessons with a cruel expression on her face, she mostly sits with Backup in classes which is even worse I think. I've overheard them talking about horrible things once in class, I think the worse conversation I've heard them have was about how many ways you can kill a person with a knife.

But today was different, Nonie wasn't joining us in science class. She was going to spend some of the morning with Watari in his office. A had told me that she was going to take some IQ tests, apparently she as been doing really well in criminology lessons and getting very high marks in the subject. He thinks she may have a chance of becoming the 3rd successor of L, but we will not know until she takes her IQ test and gets her results back.

We said goodbye to Nonie as we walked into the science lab, we took our seats at the back of the classroom and took our exercise-books from our desks. I leant on my hand as I looked over at the round red plastic wall-clock above the teacher's desk, it was now 9:19am. I looked at A sitting next to me when I heard sneeze loudly, he wiped his nose on some toilet roll and took his pen from his jean pocket. I heard a few other students enter the classroom, they also took their seats and talked quietly amongst each other.

" Do you have a cold coming?" I asked.

" No, I just got a whiff of someone's perfume..." He replied and put his toilet roll back in his denim jacket pocket. " It smells terrible, can't you smell it? The perfume's scent is like roses and lemons mixed together, it smell a bit like window cleaner they use in the corridors..."

" I can't smell anything, you must be imagining weird scents again..." I answered as I tucked some of my hair behind my ear. " Maybe they've cleaned the windows in the classroom this morning or one of the other students ate some fruit before they came to class, it could be air freshener..."

" No I'm not imagining anything, someone in this class smells weird..." He said, he got up from his chair and looked around the room. " I'm going to open a window, the smell is kind of making me feel nauseous. I'll be back in a moment..."

I bit at my bottom lip as I watched A walk over to the window, he opened the window wide and stuck his head out of the window. I sniffed at piece of my hair and then twirled it around my finger. My hair smells like lemons, he must be able to smell my new shampoo the orphanage given me. I quickly took some vanilla perfume from my bag, I sprayed a bit of it on my neck and clothes. I quickly put it back in my bag as A sat back down next to me. I gave him a big smile as I opened my exercise-book, he raised his eyebrow at me and laughed under his breath. I looked down at my book, I wrote the date in it and put my pen to my lips.

" She takes after me you know, intelligence runs in my family..." I heard A say as he began to drum his pen on his book. " Well maybe not after me, it must come from my Father's side. He was chemist at the hospital in Stafford, he had degrees in biochemistry and medicine. I remember looking through his medical books once when I was about 4 years old, I never use to read them. I just looked at the pictures because I thought they were cool, do you ever look at pictures in books instead of reading them or is that just me?"

" Sometimes I do, I like looking at cook books and drooling over pictures of food..." I answered, I looked up from my book at him and smiled. " Is that cool too?"

" I guess it's cool if you're going to cook something, but I call it being greedy and preparing yourself for lunch..." He replied with a smile. " How about your Dad? You've never mentioned him before, what did he do?"

" I'm not sure, I've never met him or seen a photograph of him..." I answered. " He left my Mum when he found out she was pregnant with me, I wasn't planned you see. I know his name was Jacob Preston and I've got the same coloured eyes as him, that's all I really know about him. Is your Dad still alive?"

" I can't really tell you that right now, its confidential information..." He replied." Look sharp, Miss Carla is here!"

I looked to the front of the classroom and pulled my chair closer to the desk. I watched Miss Carla place her pile of books down on her desk, she took a pair of glasses from the bag and hung it on the back of her chair. A few more students rushed into the classroom, I saw Backup take his seat at the front of the class. He wasn't allowed to sit near me or A anymore, he kept annoying us when we were trying to do our work. He normally sits with Nonie, but today he his sitting alone.

" Good morning class, I hope everyone is feeling refreshed from the holidays!" She said with a smile and picked one of her books up from her desk. " But not to refreshed, I want your minds to be wide awake and ready to absorb today's lesson! But who can tell me what we were learning about before Christmas? No shouting out, raise your hand if you know the answer! Yes, Autumn..."

" Nucleic acids!" Said Autumn.

" That's correct! Nucleic acids are the molecules that make up DNA, an extremely important substance that all cellular organisms use to store their genetic information. The most common two nucleic acids are called what children? I would like to see an array of hands if you know the answers!" Said Miss Carla as she looked around the room. " Yes, Adèle!"

" Ribonucleic acid!" Replied Adèle.

" Very good, it's also known as RNA..." Smiled Miss Carla. " But what is the meaning of ribonucleic acid? Maybe you sister will know this one Adèle, pay attention Elèanore when I'm talking!"

" Sorry Miss Carla!" Said Elèanore.

I looked over at Elèanore as she turned around on her chair, she raised her hand in the air and smiled at the teacher. She glanced at Adèle sitting next to her, they were identical twins. But Adèle had brown hair and Elèanore had blonde hair, they both had dark brown eyes though.

" Ribonucleic acid is a family of large biological molecules that perform multiple vital roles in the coding, decoding, regulation, and expression of genes..." Answered Elèanore." Like DNA, RNA is assembled as a chain of nucleotides, but is usually single-stranded..."

" Excellent!" Smiled Miss Carla. " But what about the other nucleic acid, can anyone tell the name of the other nucleic acid?"

" Deoxyribonucleic acid or more commonly know as DNA..." I heard A say from next to me. " It's a molecule that encodes the genetic instructions used in the development and functioning of all known living organisms and many viruses. DNA is a nucleic acid; alongside proteins and carbohydrates, nucleic acids compose the three major macromolecules essential for all known forms of life..."

" Correct, well done Alternative! But would you raise your hand next time, it's a classroom and not a dinner hall for shouting out answers..." Smiled Miss Carla, she turned around to face her wipe-board and took her black wipe-board marker pen from its holder on the board. " I would like everyone to do a thousand word assignment on nucleic acids, I hope everyone as been taking notes so far. But in a short while I'll be showing you diagrams and photographs of the genetic makeup of DNA, I'll be hand out copy's of them so you can have a closer look and use them for your assignments..."

I watched as Miss Carla began to write on the wipe-board, I looked down at my exercise-book and sighed. I'm going to struggle with this assignment, I don't have a clue when it comes to chemistry. I looked at A sitting next to me, he was already jotting down loads of notes. I turned my attention back to my book, I rested my forehead on it and closed my eyes as I let out a quiet groan.

" Hey..." I heard A's voice whisper as I felt his hand touch my back. " Are you alright?"

" I can't do this, it's to hard..." I whispered back. " I'm going to struggle with this assignment, I wish I was at normal public school again even if they made fun of me and called me snobby pants..."

" I'll help you write it later, we'll have a late dinner if you want and do our assignments in the study part of the library..." He whispered." I'll even bring before dinner snacks, I'll make sure you get good grades in chemistry. I'll be your mentor from now on or your study buddy for each class you need help in, I'll get you through chemistry..."

" Thank you, I appreciate that..." I whispered and lifted my head-up from my book. " I better start taking notes before we get caught talking, I don't want to get you into trouble..."

A gave me a smile and then continued to write notes down in his book, I'm glad I've got him as my friend. I looked back over at the wipe-board and began to copy the notes Miss Carla was writing on the board, I really hate chemistry class.

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><p>The day went by pretty quickly, well it seems like that now since it's 3:38pm and the days lessons were over until tomorrow. I went back to my room after my last class which was gym, they were teaching us how to defend ourselves with simple karate moves. It was easy for some of the students because they've practiced karate for years, I'm a beginner so I ended up being thrown on the gymnastic mats more times than throwing someone over my shoulder.<p>

I took a quick hot shower and got changed into some fresh clothes. I tied my hair into a plait, I packed my chemistry books into my bag and grabbed a chocolate bar from my dresser draw. I hung my bag over my shoulder, I opened my chocolate bar and began to eat it as I left my room. I hurried down the corridor, I rushed down two flights of stairs and popped my last piece of chocolate in my mouth as I jumped from the last step of the stairs. I threw my chocolate wrapper in a bin outside of the library, I entered the library and wiped my mouth with the back of my hand as I walked to the study area.

I noticed A sitting at a table in the middle of the study area, he was writing in his exercise-book as he ate some of his favorite Walkers English cream toffee. I smiled to myself and stopped next to the table, it looks like he's half way through his assignment already. I cleared my throat loudly, he looked up at me from his book and gave me smile.

" Hey SJ, you're late!" He smiled and then turned his attention back to his exercise-book. " I've been waiting for you for over an hour, what took you so long?"

" I took a shower, I had gym class and got all sweaty..." I replied.

" That doesn't sounds pleasant, I'm glad you took a shower before you met me then..." He chuckled.

" You're welcome I guess, I didn't know if you'd be here yet. You're normally the late one when we plan to met up, I'm normally the one waiting for you..." I said and placed my bag down on the table." I thought I'd be the early one though, but it seems like you've beaten me to it this time. Have you heard anything about Nonie's tests yet?"

" Not yet, I think she'll get them back in the next few days..." He replied." Take a seat, I've nearly finished my nucleic acids assignment and then I'll help you with your assignment. How did the rest of your classes go today?"

" Good, I think or I hope they went well..." I replied, I took a seat at the table and got my books from my bag. " I struggled in mathematics though, do you know anything about algebra? I don't understand any of it, what's a+ (b + c) = (a + b) + c mean in numbers?"

" 2 + (3 + 4) = (2 + 3) + 4..." Answered A, he closed his exercise book and crossed his on the table as he looked over at me. " Have you been doing algebra in maths or something?"

" No, I was testing your mathematical knowledge in case I needed it in the future..." I replied with giggle." So, where shall we begin with my assignment?"

" I don't know, which nucleic acid do you want to write about first?" He asked. " Deoxyribonucleic acid or ribonucleic acid? If I was you I'd start with ribonucleic acid, most students begin with deoxyribonucleic acid which I always think is the wrong decision..."

" Okay, so I should write about DNA first?" I asked.

" Yeah, it's the easiest one out of the two. Also put something about DNA bending, it just show the teacher you went that extra mile when you were studying..." He replied and got up from his chair. " DNA blending is basically DNA molecules which often have a preferred direction to bend, but I'll tell you more about that later when you've written something down about deoxyribonucleic acid first. Any questions so far?"

I shook my head at A, I got my pen from my bag and opened my exercise-book. I opened my chemistry book, I quickly read through some of the pages and began to with in my exercise-book. I heard A sit down next to me at the table, I placed my finger tip down on a page of my chemistry book and read through a paragraph.

" My Dad is alive you know, he lives in Germany..." I heard A say quietly from next to me." His name is Braiden Jeffrey Tayler, he'd be about 34 now. But I don't care about him or anything, he dumped me and my family for another woman. I shouldn't really me telling you any of this, its confidential information after all. But I think I can trust you seeing as you're my best friend and you told me about your Dad, I never get to talk about my family with anyone..."

" Really?" I asked, I looked up from my book at A and leant on my hand. " Have you ever tried contacting him before?"

" No, I don't think it would be a wise decisions seeing as I'm a successor to L now. My birth records have magical disappeared, there is no information in the outside world about me that can be traced anymore..." He replied. " I don't know if he would even want to see me anyway, I'm not even sure if he knows about what happened to my Mum and Samantha yet. He didn't even make contact with my Mum after he walked out on us, I don't know if I could forgive him..."

" Oh I see..." I said quietly and turned my attention back to my book. " I don't even know what it's like to have a Dad, I've grown up without one. I've always been surrounded by women and never men, but I would like find him someday if I had the chance or just to learn some things about him..."

" What if he doesn't want to be found?" He asked.

" Then it's his loss, that's what my Mum use to say to me when I asked about him..." I answered as I began to write in my exercise-book. " My Mum was all I needed when I was little, she was my Dad and Mum rolled into one. But I miss her and my Aunt Thora, they were my last links to my real family bloodline..."

" But you've got me, Backup and Nonie, we're sort of like a little family..." I heard A say. " I know we're not of the same bloodline, but that counts some something when you're living in an orphanage..."

" I guess so, but Nonie doesn't like me..." I sighed and looked up from my book at him. " I don't even know why she hates me, I thought we'd sorted out all of that jealously stuff last year. She's even started giving me funny looks in classes, I think you'll have to start sitting next to her in classes now..."

" Don't let her get to you, it's nothing personal..." He smiled.

" Let's not talk about families or Nonie anymore, I need to concentrate on my assignment..." I sighed and turned my attention back to my book. " Would you care to explain to me about DNA molecules and the blending stuff you mentioned to me in more detail?"

" Sure, I better get my thinking cap on then!" He replied, he pulled his chair closer to me and turned my chemistry book's pages to page 35. " Alright, so DNA molecule are basically encodes of genetic instructions used in the development and functioning of all known living organisms and many viruses..."

I sat and listened to him explaining DNA molecules to me, how did he get so smart? He's like a walking cyclopedia, he knows everything when it comes to chemistry and genetics. I began to jot down a few notes on a separate sheet of paper, I'm glad I've got him to help me out with my studies now.


	21. Decisions

**Hey, Nukia here!**

**This fanfiction is a side story to Beyond This Love.**

**I don't know if any of my old readers are reading my rewrites anymore, but I'm going to keep going. Another random chapter, I hope no one is sick of them yet. This chapter is split into three parts, but it's all set in the same day. I feel unsure about this chapter, but I'll post it anyway. **

**But thank you for the reviews, favorites and the alerts! Also to the unknown people who read my fanfictions, I promise it will pick up at some point! If you don't like it, then don't read it.**

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter 21!<strong>

It was now August, the months have gone by really quickly for some reason. Nonie as began having lesson with A and Backup in Watari's office. It turns out she's intelligent like her brother, but A is still the smartest student at The Wammy House. I don't really get to see them much anymore which is sad, the only time I got to see them was at lunch or dinner time in the dinner hall and a few hours before we had to go to bed.

Today was one of those days, I'm all by myself again until dinner. It's Saturday afternoon and I've got nothing to do besides some homework which I don't fancy doing right now. So I volunteered to help with the monthly tidying of the art room, it would keep me busy for an hour or two until dinner time. Only four other students and myself volunteered to help the art teacher to tidy the classroom, but I guess that's better than none. All we had to do was put all the paints back in the right cupboards, make sure everything was labelled properly, sweep the floor and scrub any dried paint from the desks.

By the time it had turned 3pm three of the students had got bored and left to play outside on the swings, even the art teacher had disappeared an hour ago saying he was going to get some more cleaning detergents from the caretaker. It was just me and a male student named Jinx that were left to finish the tidying the classroom. We just had the desks to scrub and then we'd be done. It didn't take us long to clean the desks, I told Jinx I'd take the bucket outside to empty well he took the brooms and the cleaning detergent back to the orphanage's caretaker.

I picked the bucket full of dirty water up from the floor, I left the classroom and made my way along the corridor that led to the main entrance of The Wammy House. I opened one of the big doors of the main entrance of the orphanage, I walked through the doorway and made my way down some stone steps that led to a pathway. It was a nice day, the sun was shining and most of the children were outside playing. I stopped by a grid by a flower bed, I began to pour the water down the drain as I chewed at my bottom lip.

" Hey lady!" I heard someone shout. " Watch out for the ball!"

I quickly turned around and saw a football flying towards me. I held the bucket in front of my face to shield myself from the ball, I heard the ball hit the bucket hard and felt some of the water from it splash onto my face. I spat some of the water from my mouth, I placed the bucket down on the ground and wiped the water away from my face with my cardigan's sleeve.I looked down at my blue dress and frowned, there were specs of dirty water all down the front of it.

" Are you okay lady?!" I heard a boy shout. " My friend is sorry, he didn't mean it!"

" Shut up you idiot!" I heard another boy yell." We'll get scolding from Mr Ruvie if she see's us, run away!"

I heard some children laughing, I looked up from my dress and saw a boy dressed in black with blonde hair running away down a path with some other children. There was another boy with brown hair just standing there with his mouth wide open, he had a Game Boy in his hands and a pair of goggles on his head. He didn't look very old, he must be one of the younger students from the east part of the orphanage.

" Wow, it sucks to be you..." I heard someone say. " I don't envy you at all, I bet your dress is ruined now. You should take it to the laundry room, they maybe able to do something about it before the water soaks into the dresses material. I hear soaking clothes in baking soda gets rid of stains, maybe you should borrow some baking soda from the kitchen... "

I turned around and saw Nonie standing on the steps, she had her arms crossed with a smirk on her face. She walked down the steps and flipped some of her blonde hair over her shoulder as she walked past me. I watched her walk over to the boy with brown hair, she placed her hand on his shoulder and led him down the pathway where the other children had run down not long ago.

I sat down on a step as I sighed, why me? I heard footsteps coming down the stairs behind me, I looked over my shoulder to see Backup and A walking down the steps. They were dressed in jogging pants and black t-shirts, they must be going for a run before dinner again. I got up from the step, I picked the bucket up from the ground and tipped the rest of the dirty water down the drain.

" Hey SJ, do you fancy a run?" I heard A say." It will give you an appetite before dinner or maybe not, it just depends on how far you plan run..."

" No thank you, I'm not dressed for running..." I replied and turned around to face him. " Thank you for the offer though, but I'm busy right now. I volunteered to help with the monthly tidying of the art room, I've got to go and return the bucket before I go and get cleaned up. I've kind of had an accident with the bucket or should I say a football collided with the bucket, but it can be fixed with some baking soda so Nonie told me not long ago..."

" Pity, I would have liked to have seen you trying to keep up with us..." Smirked Beyond as he stretched his arms above his head. " It would have been very entertaining, it would have been like hounds chasing a fox..."

" I thought foxes were faster than hounds, that's what you normally see on television..." I said, I walked over to the steps and patted A's arm. " Excuse me A, would you happen to have any mints or chewing gum on you today? I can taste cleaning detergent in my mouth, it's not pleasant..."

" I've got toffee on me, will that do?" He asked.

" Sure, anything is better than the taste of detergent in my mouth..." I replied.

" Just the one mind you, these babies have to last me until Monday..." He smiled and took a toffee from his jogging bottom's pocket. " You'll owe me something, so I'll be calling in a favour very soon..."

" Okay, I've got a few Ferrero Rochers with your name on them in my room with you'd like them..." I smiled, I took the toffee from his hand and popped it into my mouth. " I better return the bucket to the caretaker now, I need to finish some physics homework off for Monday and get changed before dinner. I'll see you around 5pm, enjoy your run!"

" Sure you don't want to come with us?" Asked A.

" I'm very sure!" I answered.

" Enough of your idle talk, she doesn't want to come with us!" Snapped B as he grabbed hold of A's arm and pulled him away from the steps. "Accept her answer and move your ass!"

" Aww, is my puppy hound getting restless?" Chuckled A, he quickly got Backup into a headlock and led him down the pathway. " I'll catch you later SJ at dinner, I'm just going to take the puppy for a run!"

" Alternative, let me go!" Yelled Backup with a chuckle as he struggled." I would recommend that you to run when you release me, I'm going kill you!"

" Is my little puppy mad? Who's a good boy, who's my good puppy dog?!" Asked A as he laughed. " Ready, steady, go!"

I watched A release Backup from the headlock, he pushed him away from him and then sprinted off down the pathway with Backup following behind him. I covered up my mouth and laughed when Backup tackled A to the ground, A just pushed him off as he got up from the ground and continued running down the pathway. I giggled to myself and watched them disappear into some woods near the cemetery, boys will be boys I guess.

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><p>I put my physics homework in my bag with the rest of my books and my pens ready for Monday's lesson. I hung my bag on the end of my bed, I sat down at my dressing table and stared at my reflection in the mirror as I brushed my fingers through my hair. I took a yellow hair-bobble from my dressing table's draw, I tied my hair up into a ponytail and looked over at the door when I heard someone gently knocking on it.<p>

" Who is it?" I asked.

" It's Watari, I'm here to deliver your fortnightly mail..." He replied.

I got up from my chair, I rushed over to the door and opened it. I gave Watari a smile as I invited him into my room, I quickly grabbed a pile of my dirty laundry from the floor and put it in my laundry basket. I turned around to face Watari, I watched him close my bedroom's door behind him and take two envelopes from the inside pocket of his suit's jacket.

" Who are the letters from?" I asked.

" It's from your friend Bella, she's sent two letters this time instead of one..." He replied. " One was addressed to me and the other one is addressed to you, it seems that I have something very important to discuss with you that could change your future. Your friend Bella as written to me and asked if I would allow you to move back to Oxford to live with her, would you have any interest of moving back to your hometown if you had the chance?"

" Really?" I asked. " I mean, I'm not sure..."

" Yes, I've brought both of the letters for you to read..." He replied and took a step towards me. " You have a month to decide what you would like to do, when you have finished with the letters I would like you to return the letter addressed to me. But please don't feel pressured by Bella's offer, the decision is yours at the end of the day my dear..."

" Of course, I'll make sure you get your letter back..." I said.

" Here's your letter, all the information you need to know is inside of the envelope addressed to me..." He smiled and handed me the two envelopes. " If you need me or have any questions I'll be in my office, I'm here to support you and give you guidance until you make a decision..."

" Do I have to make a decision right now?" I asked.

" No my dear, you have a month to decide yet..." He replied, he walked over to the room's door and opened it as he looked over his shoulder at me. " This evening I've arranged a movie night for students over the age of 12 in the television room, it will be a cheesy 80's horror fest night with many treats and fizzy drinks. I for one didn't choose the theme of the night, you have a few of the other students to thank for that theme. But you are most welcome to join them, it will begin at 7pm and end at 2am in the morning..."

" Okay, I will think about it..." I sighed.

" Maybe you should take this opportunity to spend some time with your friends, time is precious as you very know my dear. It will be months until any guardian or adoption procedures will be put into motion upon your decision, the choice is yours alone..." He said. " But remember that your decision will change your future, make sure you make the right choice by the end of the month..."

" I'll take that to mind, thank you Watari..." I smiled.

I watched Watari close the room's door behind him, I sat down on my bed and opened the envelope addressed to me. I quickly read through the letter, I put the letter back in its envelope and put it in my dresser draw. I left my room and made my way to the dinner hall, I was running 10 minutes late. A, Backup and Nonie were already sitting at a table in the corner of the hall eating their dinner. I took a tray from the tray holder, I chose cheesy pasta with sweetcorn and some jelly marshmallow surprise for dessert. I got myself a drink of orange juice, I took some cutlery from a tray and walked over to the table.

" Hello, sorry I'm late!" I said with a smile as I sat down next to Nonie and placed my tray down on the table. " Watari wanted a private word with me, so I apologize for my delay..."

" Hey!" Smiled A. " I've got the most amazing news ever, do you want to hear it?"

" Sure..." I replied.

" I'm going to a college in Japan for a month!" Smiled A, he took a bite of his apple and then spoke with his mouth full. " I'm going over there to take part in the criminal justice studies program, it's going to be intense!"

" Wow, that sounds amazing..." I smiled and picked my folk up from my tray. " I'm really happy for you, what a great opportunity you have been given. What exactly is a criminal justice studies program anyway?"

I ate my cheesy pasta as I listened to A telling me all about the criminal justice studies program. Watari had arranged for him to visit the college in Japan in 3 weeks time and then he would begin his program the week after that for a month, he was really excited about it. I envy him sometimes though, he gets to travel to places all over the world with Watari and his mentor L. I would love to go travelling myself someday, maybe that's one thing I could do when I turn 18 with some of my inheritance money. I stabbed a pasta shell on my plate with my fork, I held it in front of my face and stared at it.

" Why are you being quiet?" I heard Nonie ask quietly." Have you lost your voice for once or are you getting bored of hearing A talk about Japan? I know I am, the lucky shit gets everything handed to him on a plate!"

" No, I've just got a lot on my mind right now..." I replied.

" Like what?" Asked Nonie.

" It's just that I've had some news myself today, I have been asked if I would like to move to Oxford to live with my Mum's old best friend Bella and her son Jamie..." I replied as I stirred my fork around in my bowl of pasta. " I'm not sure yet if I want to move there, I kind of like living in Winchester now. Also I would have to go back to public school, it would mean restarting all my education over again and making new friends... "

" I'd move if I got the chance, anywhere is better than this orphanage..." Said Nonie." I don't think you'd be missed here, so I would move if I was you..."

" Nonie, don't be rude!" Frowned A.

" What? I'm just pointing out some facts! The children here wouldn't noticed if she decided to move to Oxford and I know for a fact that any orphan here would love to get out of this place!" Smirked Nonie, she spooned some of her strawberry jelly into her mouth and nudged Backup's arm with her elbow." What do you think B, would you noticed if SJ moved to Oxford?"

" Do I have to take part in this conversation?" Asked B.

" Yes, it's important!" Replied Nonie.

" Well this conversation truly doesn't appeal to me, but if you want my opinion then I will partake just for one moment..." Sighed B. " If SJ moved to Oxford then I would notice, I like watching her lifespan. I'm waiting for the moment it begins to tick down, I can't wait to see when she is going to di..."

" Backup!" Interrupted A.

I felt the table jerk up, I grabbed hold of my glass of juice and pulled my chair away from the table. I looked over at A and Backup, they were glaring at each other. I heard Nonie laughing across the table from me, I placed my glass back down on the table and pulled my chair closer to the table. I picked my spoon up from my tray, I ate some of my jelly marshmallow surprise and cleared my throat.

" I hear there is going to be cheesy horror movie night in the television room from 7pm, do any of you guys want to go and watch some of the films?" I asked. " Watari told me about it, he said they're be showing films until 2am and there will be loads of treats to eat. Doesn't that sound fun?"

" It depends on what movies they're be showing, but I'm up for a horror movie night..." Said Nonie, she picked a strawberry from her bowl and dipped it into some whipped cream." What movie titles are they showing?"

" I'm not really sure, but they're all from the 1980's..." I replied.

" The special effects will be awful then, but I'll go all the same..." Sighed Nonie as she looked over at A and Backup." How about you two, are you guys up for a movie night or are you planning to glare at each other for the rest of the evening?"

" Yeah I'll come, but for now I need to be somewhere..." Replied A." I'll meet you guys in the television room at 7pm, I'll see you in a while..."

I watched A get up from the table, he took another apple from his tray and quickly left the dinner hall. I looked back at Nonie and Backup, they were talking quietly to each other. I finished the rest of my dinner, I picked some left over sweets from A's tray and said goodbye to my friends.

* * *

><p>I left my bedroom to go and meet the others at the television room for the movie night, but they were already there waiting for me. Watari had laid out many treats for the students to eat throughout the movie night, popcorn, crisps, lollipops, chocolate bars and fizzy drinks. It was like a midnight feast, I bet half of the students will be on sugar highs for the rest of the night. I chose a packet of fizzy cola bottles and a carton of milk, I sat with Nonie on some beanbags well A sat with Backup on the sofa.<p>

The movie line up for the night was terrible, the titles of the films spoke for themselves even if I've never seen any of them before. There was Killer Klowns from Outer Space, C.H.U.D and Critters. The students had a vote of hands to decide what should be watched first, most of the students voted for Critters. I opened my bag of fizzy cola bottle, I popped one of them into my mouth and pulled a face as the fizzy coating of the sweets tingled on my tongue.

" Great, I was hoping they would put Killer Klowns from Outer Space on first..." I heard Nonie say." I've seen Critters loads times, I was hoping for creepy clowns causing funny cheesy deaths with their razor-sharp teeth and acid filled flower squirters. I'm just guessing what the movie is about from the video cover, but that would be cool right?"

" That sound disturbing, why would you want to watching something like that?"I asked and looked at her sitting next to me. " Wouldn't stuff like that give you nightmares?"

" Nope, the more gore the better as I always say!" She smirked. " Have you ever seen Friday the 13th or Halloween before?"

" No, are they good?" I asked.

" They're okay I guess, you should come to my room one time and watch them with me..." She replied as she took a lollipop from her hoody pocket and unwrapped it. " We could have movie afternoon tomorrow with A and Backup, would you come if I arranged it?"

" Sure, I'll prefer horror movies in the day anyway..." I smiled.

" Cool, I'll get the videotapes from the library in the morning and borrow a video-player from one of the classroom to hookup to my television in my room..." She smiled. " So, have you made a decision about Oxford yet?"

" Not yet, I've got a month to decide if I want to move there yet..." I replied. " If I said yes then it may take months for me to move to Oxford, they have to finalize it with documents and go through a guardian adoption agreement. But the choice is mine, I just don't know what to decide right now... "

" Oh right, can I tell you something in confidence?" She whispered. " But you've got to swear that you'll tell nobody about what I'm about to tell you, do you swear?"

" Okay, I promise..." I replied.

" Do you remember when A left the dinner hall earlier today?" She whispered.

" Yeah, I remember..." I nodded.

" Well, he went straight to Watari's office and demanded that the adoption should be stopped. He doesn't want you to leave here and I don't want you to leave if it makes my brother unhappy, don't you it yet?" She asked with a whisper." It's so obvious even a baby could get it!"

" What am I meant to be getting?" I asked.

" He's totally crushing on you, it's plain as daylight..." She replied as she took her lollipop from her mouth. " If you leave now you'll break his heart, then I'd have to hunt you down and kill you for it. He struggles enough with his depression and self-harming, he's so messed up inside no one around here even knows about it because he smiles through it..."

" He does what?!" I yelled and then covered up my mouth when I heard a few children starting hushing around me." Since when as all of this been going on? Why didn't he tell me about it?"

" I don't know, I'm not his psychiatrist..." She answered.

I looked over at A sitting on the sofa with Backup and a few other children, he was leaning on his hand well he watched the film. I slouched down on the beanbag and watched A eating some of his crisps, why haven't I notice this before? Thinking about it now it is plain as daylight, he's always been there for me and makes sure I've got everything I need well I've lived at The Wammy House. I quickly turned my attention to the television when he glanced over at me, I chewed at my bottom lip and stare at the television for the rest of the movie night.


	22. Welcome Home!

**Hey, Nukia here!**

**This fanfiction is a side story to Beyond This Love.**

**I don't know if any of my old readers are reading my rewrites anymore, but I'm going to keep going. This is another random chapter, I keep getting ideas and I have to write them down. I'll get to the serious chapters very soon, but I hope you're enjoying my fanfiction so far. **

**But thank you for the reviews, favorites and the alerts! Also to the unknown people who read my fanfictions, I promise it will pick up at some point! If you don't like it, then don't read it.**

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><p><strong>Chapter 22!<strong>

It was coming to the end of September, A had been away for over 3 weeks now. He rang Backup a few days ago and spoke to him about the college he was attending in Japan, it sounds like he's really enjoying the criminal justice studies program from what Backup had told me. I'm happy he didn't ask to speak to me though, I've began to feel a bit awkward around him now since Nonie told me that he was crushing on me, but I don't think he's noticed just yet. I hate to confess that I kind of like him to, but I'm not sure what to do about it. I've said nothing to Nonie or Backup about it, they would just make fun of me if they knew. So I've decided to keep it to myself for now and get on with my day-to-day lessons at The Wammy House.

Today's lessons had already ended, I had an hour before dinner and decided to finish one of my sketches for forensic art class in my room. It was pretty easy to do, I had to follow facial descriptions from an instruction worksheet and draw the face from the instructions. I yawned as I grabbed one of my blue cushions from the end of my bed, I placed it in front of my sketchbook and leaned my elbow on it as I continued doing my homework. I heard a knock at my room's door, I glanced over at the door and put my pencil to my lips.

" Who is it?!" I called.

" It's me!" I heard a male's voice say from the other side of the door. " May I come in and socialize with you?"

" Go away Backup, I'm busy!" I sighed and turned my attention back to my sketchbook. " I don't need you pestering me right now, I'm doing my homework! Why don't you go and annoy Nonie or any of the other student in orphanage!"

" But I'm lonely!" He whined.

" Stop being a baby, I'm busy!" I said with a giggle. " I will socialize with you and Nonie in the dinner hall in an hours time, I will see you then!"

I heard my room's door creak as it was opened, I looked over at the door and sighed when Backup peeped his head around the door. Since A left to study in Japan for a month he's been constantly bugging me, he keeps whining about being lonely and having no one to talk to when he hangs around with Nonie most of the time. I watched him creep into my room, he closed the door quietly behind him and perched himself on the chair at my dressing table. I turned my attention back to my sketchbook, I read one of the description questions from my instruction worksheet and begin to draw in my book.

" May I inquire what are you doing?" I heard Backup ask." I could help you with your homework, my brain is quite knowledgeable..."

" I'm finishing one of my sketches for forensic art class, it as to be in by Friday..." I replied as I drew one of the eyes on the face of the person I was drawing. " I thought you would have been with Mr Ruvie and Nonie still, did you finish your studies early today?"

" Yes, I finished my studies early today because Mr Ruvie had something important he needed to attend to this evening..." He answered. " I'm grateful his study lesson came to an end quickly, his stupidity annoys me. May I inquire who the person is meant do be in your sketch?"

" I don't know, I think they just make facial descriptions up for the forensic art class..." I replied, I sat up of my bed and picked my pencil-case up from my bed. " So, what do you want?"

" Nothing, I'm extremely bored and in need of entertainment..." He answered with a sigh. " I hate to admit that I miss Alternative, but alas he will not be back for another week yet. How I miss him, I've got no one to annoy until his return.."

" I thought you were friends with Nonie, why don't you annoy her instead of me for a change..." I said as I put all of my pencils back in my pencil-case. " I don't think I'll provide you with any form of entertainment, I'm dull and boring after all. That's what I overheard Nonie telling one of the other students in one of our classes before, I'll have to get a personality transplant to fit in here..."

" Boring yes, but you're never dull in my eyes..." He chuckled. " I find you fascinating, your lifespan is my main interest. I need to work out why it's frozen, it must have a specific meaning behind it..."

" There you go with the lifespan stuff again, I truly don't understand what you're on about..." I sighed as I zipped my pencil-case up and closed my sketchbook." Come on, let's go and met Nonie in the dinner hall. Apparently they have something new on the menu, something called creamy tomato pasta with prawns and garlic roots. I'm interested in trying it, how about you?"

" That sounds disgusting, I've got a dislike to prawns..." He answered, he stepped down from my chair at my dressing table and put his finger tip to his lips. " They remind me of maggots, fat juicy maggots with their gooey insides and crunch spines!"

" Backup, you've just put me of prawns for life!" I sighed with a smile and hung my legs over the edge of my bed. " Maybe I'll skip dinner now and live on gummi bears instead until breakfast, you're truly a disgusting human being at times!"

" Disgusting yes, human no..." He chuckled as he opened my room's door. " I'm hungry, I need my daily dose of my delicious strawberry jam. Will you be accompanying me to the dinner hall this evening or shall I go ahead and leave you to your feast of gummi bears?"

" I'll accompany you then, just give me one moment!" I answered.

I slid from my bed, I picked my cardigan up from my bed and walked over to my dressing table. I put my cardigan on, I quickly brushed my hair with my hairbrush and sprayed myself with some of my favorite vanilla scented perfume. I took hold of Backup's arm, I led him out of my room and let go of his arm as closed my room's door behind me. We walked along the corridor together, I listened to Backup telling me about a frog he dissected this morning in biology and how he discovered that the frog as a three-chambered heart unlike the human heart which as only four chambers.

" That's interesting fact to know I guess, thank you for sharing that bit of information with me..." I said as I walked with him down the two flights of stairs to the ground floor of the orphanage. " So, have you heard from A this week?"

" I've not heard from Alternative since last week, but he did mention that he would be taking exams the following week which would be this week now..." He replied. " So that would explain why he's not been in touch, but let me ask you something. Did you make a decision about Oxford yet? Seeing as it's been over a month now and you're still here you must have declined your Mother's friend's invite, am I correct?"

" I've haven't decided anything yet, I asked if I could extend my decision for another 3 weeks because I needed more time to think about it..." I replied and jumped from the last step of the stairs. " Watari and Bella were fine about it, they both understand it's a hard decision for me to make. If I left The Wammy House then it would feel like I've betrayed my Aunt's wishes, she's planned my future for me and I don't want to seen ungrateful for all the things she did for me..."

" I see, but how would it be ungrateful?" He asked. " Your Aunt is deceased, I believe that the dead cannot hurt the living and your choices wouldn't affect her because she's dead. Only the living can be betrayed, your actions wouldn't bother your Aunt at all..."

" Maybe so, but it would still feel like I'm going against her wishes..." I replied. " My Aunt Thora did a lot for me, she took me in when I was 8 years old and brought me up. She didn't have to do that, she took me in because she felt like it was her duty as my only living blood relative!"

" It seems that your decision is quite easy to decide, I believe you have made your decision already..." He smirked as he walked a head of me and took a strawberry jam sachet from his jean pocket. " I think your future belongs here with us, you're one of us now..."

" One of you?" I asked. " Do you mean an orphan?"

" No, what I meant was a freak..." He chuckled. " Once you enter The Wammy House you're branded a freak from the outside world, no one here is normal. Especially me and a few other children, I would go as far as saying Nonie is at the same freak level as me. We're both unstable, we're both watching and waiting to unlock your secrets..."

" What's that meant to mean?" I asked.

" It's not important, let's get something disgusting to eat..." He replied.

I followed Backup into the dinner hall, he can be very confusing at times. But some of what he says can make sense on the odd occasion, I do agree with him about my Oxford decision though. I have more pros than cons at this very moment, one of the pros being my friends. I stopped with Backup at the tray holder, we both took a tray and walked along the deli counters to choose our dinner.

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><p>I hurried up a flight of stairs that led to the third floor, I've just heard from Nonie that A had arrived back at The Wammy House over three hours ago. I couldn't wait to see him, but I was also dreading it at the same time since I learnt that he was crushing on me. But for now I'm pushing those thoughts aside, I just can't wait to see my best friend. I ran along the corridor on the third floor, I stopped outside of A's room and knocked on the door. I tucked some of my hair behind my ear as I heard the door unlock, I cupped my hands behind my back and smiled when I saw A peep his head around the door. His blonde shaggy hair was sticking up all over the place, he looked so tired and had dark circles under his bright blue eyes. He opened the door wide as he yawned and rubbed at his right eye, he must have jet lag.<p>

" Welcome home!" I smiled.

" Hey..." He said in a sleepy tone. " What are you doing here?"

" I'm here to welcome you home, did I wake you?" I asked. " I'm sorry, Nonie told me you were awake about 10 minutes ago when I saw her in the dinner hall. But seeing how you arrived back at the orphanage over three hours ago then I'm not surprise that you were sleeping. I shall come back later after you've had a rest, I'm sorry if I disturbed you..."

" No, it's alright..." He yawned and stepped away from the doorway. " You can come in, I was only power napping. You'd have known if I was asleep, I wouldn't have answered the door and you would have been standing in the corridor for a very long time..."

" Are you sure?" I asked. " I can come back in a few hours if you like, I don't mind visiting you later after you've slept for a while..."

" It's fine, you can come in..." He replied and ran his fingers through his hair as he yawned. " I'll say sorry about the mess in my room now before you enter my domain, I've not finished unpacking yet and there is a pile of dirty laundry in the middle of my room. Also Backup as a bunch of empty jam jars by his bed, so don't mess with them or he'll know..."

" It's okay, I know boys can be messy even if they're geniuses..." I smiled.

I walked past A into his room, his room was dimly lit and he right about the mess. There were clothes scattered across the floor of the room, I stopped by A's bedside table and picked a photo frame up from it. It was a photograph of his Mum, Sister and himself with his German Shepherd dog Maxwell. They looked so happy in the photo, it's not fair what happened to his family. I heard the room's door close, I placed the photo frame down on the bedside table and sat down on A's bed. I watched him grabbed his white hoody from the floor, he quickly put it on and crouched down in front of his opened suitcase near his bed.

" How was your flight from Tokyo back to England?" I asked.

" It was alright I guess, but being trapped on a plane for over 11 hours with the panda detective wasn't fun. That guy is a jerk, all he cares about his is precious sweets and bringing Justice to the guilty..." He answered as he rummaged around in his suitcase. " The way he treats people though, I mean can't he show some kind of sympathy towards victims and innocent people. Anyway, how have you been?"

" I've been good, how about you?" I asked.

" I can't complain, I enjoyed the criminal justice studies program and learned a lot from it..." He replied and threw one of his t-shirts over his shoulder. " The students were nice, the tourist attractions were amazing and the Japanese cuisine was fantastic. I've seen so many wonderful things well I was there, it will be hard to describe them all to you..."

" I'm glad you enjoyed it, did you take any photographs?" I asked.

" No, but I've brought a few postcards back with me to show the other students..." He answered as he took a white paper bag from his suitcase and got up from the floor. " If I ever go to Japan again I'll remember to take a camera with me, I actually never thought of taking one with me. But I don't think Watari would allow it, I'm meant to be unknown to the world after all.."

" I see, can I ask you something?" I asked.

" Sure, what's up?" He asked.

" Have you gotten taller or is it just me?" I asked as I looked him up and down well I twirled a piece of my hair around my finger. " What were they feeding you in Japan? You must have grown at least 3 inches in a month, am I correct?"

" All kinds of different foods, the cuisine in Japan was delicious and adventurous or sometimes just weird!" He replied. " I loved Tempura and Yakitori though, I could have easily lived over there. The life style was awesome, I really want to go back there again one day if I ever get the chance..."

" That sounds great, did you use chopsticks when you ate your food in Japan? I asked. " I remember using chopsticks once when I went to a Chinese restaurant with my Aunt and Rose, I accidentally flicked a prawn from my plate when I was trying to pick it up with chopsticks. It hit a woman on the back of her head and got stuck in her hair, she didn't notice though..."

" Remind me not to sit near you then when you're eating food with chopstick, you sound dangerous well using them!" He chuckled, he walked over to his bed and sat down next to me. " I've brought you a present, it's nothing much or even expensive for that matter. I've got Nonie the same thing, but I've brought Backup some Japanese strawberry jam. I'm not sure if he'll eat it, but the strawberry jam from Japan tastes really good with shrimp sushi..."

" You didn't have to buy me anything, but I thank you for your present..." I smiled.

" It's alright, I wanted to buy you and the guys something from Japan..." He said with a smile and held the white paper bag towards me. " Go on, open it!"

I took the paper bag from A's hand, I opened it and took two packets of Japanese sweets from bag. The sweets were called Puccho and Mizoredama, I'm not really sure what flavours they were or what they tasted like. I thanked him again and put them back into the paper bag. I placed the bag down on the bed next to me, I felt someone gently take hold of my right arm and pull something over my hand. I looked down at my hand and saw pretty pale pink beaded bracelet on my wrist. I looked up at A from my wrist, I felt myself blush slightly and pulled my arm away from his hand.

" What is it?" I asked.

" It's a friendship bracelet, don't you like it?" He asked, he showed me a black beaded bracelet on his left wrist and pointed to it with his finger. " I've got one too, but mines all manly and not girly. I've not brought Nonie or Backup one, they don't like accessorizing..."

" Of course I do, it's pretty!" I replied and ran my fingers over the pale pink beads. " Thank you, but you've brought me to much. I'll have to make you some homemade toffee for a thank you, I'll ask Watari if I can use the kitchen one evening this week to make you some..."

" You don't have to that even if I'm temped to let you make me some because toffee is my favorite treat, but it's perfectly fine..." He smiled. " So, what's been going on around here for the last month? I've missed out on all the excitement The Wammy House as to offer, who's been up to what?"

" Nothing exciting as happened, it's been pretty quiet and normal around here for once..." I replied.

" How about Nonie, I hope she's been nice to you well I was gone..." He said as he crawled onto his bed and lay down on his stomach. " That goes for Backup too, he's not been creepy or stalkerish as he? I know he creeps you out sometimes, but he also creeps me out as well with all this talk about lifespans and homicide. I've got no idea what's wrong with that guy sometimes, he's off his rocker!"

" They have both been nice to me, well over-nice sometimes which I personally find creepy anyway. Backup was annoying me a fair bit over the month, he kept complaining about being bored and feeling lonely. I think he's missed you, but Nonie as been fine with me. We've even started hangout in the television room three times a week well you were in Japan, she's kind of growing on me now..." I replied and looked at A over my shoulder as I heard him yawn loudly. " Would you like me to leave now so you can sleep?"

" No, you can stay..." He answered as he wrapped his arms around his pillow and snuggled his face into it. " Keep talking, I'm listening with my eyes closed. What else as been going on around here? How have the classes been without me in them? Anything new with you or anyone else in the orphanage?"

" Well I got a C in DNA biometrics, I've also got a little cleaning job in the kitchen to earn some pocket-money..." I answered. " I've been allowed to extend my decision about Oxford for a while, it seems that I have more pros than cons now..."

" That's good..." He mumbled sleepily. " How much money will you be earning?"

" £6 a week, I know it not much. But it will do for buying little things that I may need and I'm going to save some of the money for a rainy day..." I replied. " I'm going to go now, you're falling asleep on me and I need to get ready for after lunch lessons. I'll come by later when you're more awake, sweet dreams until then..."

" Sure, I'll just have a little nap..." He said as he pulled one of his blankets over his head. " I'll see you in the dinner hall at 5pm, I will tell you more about Japan later and if you see Backup tell him to be quiet when he comes back to our room..."

" Okay, I'll see you at dinner..." I smiled.

I got up from A's bed, I switched his bedside table's lamp off and picked the white paper bag up from the bed. I walked over to the room's door, I opened it quietly and looked over at him sleeping in his bed. I watched him roll over onto his side as he let out a loud snore, I'm glad I don't have a roommate. I smiled to myself as I rolled my eyes and closed the door quietly behind me, I'm glad A is back.


	23. Happy Birthday!

**Hey, Nukia here!**

**This fanfiction is a side story to Beyond This Love.**

**I don't know if any of my old readers are reading my rewrites anymore, but I'm going to keep going. This is another random chapter, it took longer this time because my writing confidence got knocked once again.**

**But thank you for the reviews, favorites and the alerts! Also to the unknown people who read my fanfictions, I promise it will pick up at some point! If you don't like it, then don't read it.**

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><p><strong>Chapter 23!<strong>

I groaned as I heard my alarm clocking beeping, I rolled over onto my side and turned it off without opening my eyes. I snuggled my face into my pillow and yawned, I don't want to get out of bed today. It was the 5th of November which meant two things, it was Bonfire night and it was also my 14th birthday. I heard a knock at my room's door, I opened my eyes slightly and sat up in my bed. I pulled my blankets away from me, I got out of my bed and walked over to the door. I unlocked the door, I opened it slightly and peeped through the tiny gap into the corridor. I saw Nonie standing the corridor with a card and yellow balloon in her hand, she had a big smile on her face.

" Time to get up!" She yelled from the corridor. " It's your birthday! I saw a gorilla in the zoo that looked like you or something like that, I can't remember all of that birthday song. Are you going to let me in?"

" Thank you Nonie for your birthday wishes, but I'm tired right now and in need of a shower to wake myself up..." I replied and pulled my face away from the gap. " I'll be down in half an hour, I just need to do a few things first.."

" Come on, let me in!" She frowned. " I've brought you a balloon and made you a card, doesn't that earn me some kind of entrance into your room well I wait for you!"

I groaned closed the room's door, I told Nonie again that I would meet her in dinner hall in half an hour. I heard her kicked my room's door, she said something about being grumpy and that she would leave the balloon outside of my room. Something tells me I'll be her bad books today, but I'm to tired to think about her wrath right now. I quickly got showered, tied my hair up into a ponytail and chose a pink dress to wear. I put my Mum's butterfly necklace on, I sprayed myself with some body spray and put the bracelet on that A had brought me from Japan. I quickly put my black slip on shoes on, I opened my room's door and gently got hit in the face by the balloon Nonie had brought me. I untied it from the door-handle, I opened the card attached to the balloon and smile. Nonie had drawn a little rabbit on it with flowers and trees, it looks like she worked really hard on it.

" How sweet!" I smiled as I opened up the card and then raised one of my eyebrows. " Oh my, that's disturbing..."

Nonie had drawn a headless rabbit inside the card, there was blood squirting from it neck and the trees around it were burning. I sighed as I walked over to my dressing table, I tied the balloon's string to the back of my chair and placed the card Nonie had made me next to my hairbrush. I walked over to my bed, I quickly made it and drew back the curtains. I put all my dirty laundry in my washing basket, I grabbed my bag from the end of my bed and hung it over my shoulder as I left my room.

It didn't take me long to get to the dinner hall, it had just turned 8:25am and all the students were busy eating their breakfast. I took a tray from the tray holder, I walked over to the deli counters and chose myself some breakfast. I picked a bowl of mixed fruit, a strawberry yogurt and a cup of tea. I looked around the hall, I spotted Nonie sitting at a table in the back of the dinner hall. I took a spoon from the cutlery tray, I walked over to where she was sitting and stopped next to the table. She was wearing sunglasses for some reason, she had her earphones on and bobbed her head along to music she was listening to as she ate some of her toast.

" Morning Nonie, I'm sorry about earlier..." I said, I tilted my head and watched her eating some more of her toast as she continued to bob her head. " Nonie! Hello!"

" What?!" She yelled slightly." What do you want?!"

" Nevermind, you just keep listening to your music..." I sighed and sat down at the table. " I'll just eat my breakfast in silence, you keep doing what you're doing..."

" Hello SJ, I didn't notice you there!" She smirked, she removed her earphones from her head and hung them around her neck." Funny that you didn't notice me being nice to you this morning, I was standing right in front of your face and you didn't invite me into your room when I would have let you in my room to wait for me!"

" I guess I deserved that after this morning, I apologize for my behavior..." I sighed." I was over tired, I was up till 11pm trying to finish my thousand word literacy paper on Hamlet, Prince of Denmark last night. I've still not finished it and it's meant to be in by tomorrow, so it will be another late night for me..."

" Forget about it, I mean who is actually happy first thing in the morning?" She asked." I'm terrible first thing in the morning, I once punched A in the face for waking me up before my alarm clock went off..."

" That doesn't sound very pleasant, poor A..." I replied with a giggle.

" Yeah, but he knows not to wake me up before my alarm clock goes now..." She smirked.

" Thank you for the balloon and card by the way, I've not had a balloon since I was a child..." I smiled and picked my spoon up from my tray. " Where are Backup and A anyway? It's not like them to be late for breakfast, especially Backup because I know he likes to get to the strawberry jam before any of the other students..."

" They had their breakfast early today, so you're stuck with me until morning lessons begin..." She replied. " You're welcome about the balloon, I found it in a tree outside in the garden and thought I'd give it to you. Pretty thoughtful though, right?"

" Oh right, but yes that was very thoughtful of you..." I answered. " Nonie, can I ask why you're wearing sunglasses indoors?"

" Oh, erm my eyes are sore this morning..." She replied." I must have got some dirt in them or something, they're be fine in a few hours..."

" Do you want me to take you to the nurse?" I asked.

" Nah, I've already cleaned my eyes out with some eye drops the nurse gave me a few weeks ago..." She replied and popped her last piece of toast into her month. " My eyes get sore and blurry sometimes, I think I may need glasses at some point. But the nurse said it could be due to all the studying I've been doing lately, a lot reading over a long period of time can put a strain on your eyes. My eyes have been sensitive to light as well and I keep getting headaches, I'm going to ask for an optical examination soon..."

" I didn't know, if you need any help just let me know..." I smiled.

" Thanks, so are you going to the Bonfire display tonight on the grounds?" She asked as she put her CD player inside of her red hoody. " Watari does it every year for the children, but it's kind of lame when you get to your teenage years. I maybe 14 now, but I was finding it dull way before then. But my question is are you coming or will you be to busy with your literacy paper? I'm just going to help out with the younger students, they need supervision at all times around the fireworks. Especially this little boy called Mello, he's one little tearaway!"

" What time does it begin?" I asked.

" About 6pm, there will be food served before the display begins..." She answered and got up from the table. " I heard that there is someone you may know who will be working in the kitchen tonight, she's named after a flower. I can't remember her name, but she told me she knows you though..."

" Rose?" I asked.

" Yeah that's her name, Rose Alice Morrissey!" She replied as she put her earphones back on and picked her tray up from the table. " I'm going now, I've got to be at Watari's office by 9am. I'll see you later on!"

I said goodbye to Nonie and I watched her walk away from the table. I took my yogurt pot from my tray, I ripped the lid from the pot and licked the lid clean. I wonder how she knows Rose's full name? No one normally tells a person their full name without a reason, that's very odd how she knows Rose's full name. I placed the lid down on my tray, I spooned some of my yogurt into my mouth and stared at the wall as I finished the rest of my breakfast in silence.

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><p>The last lesson of the day just ended, I hurried back to my room to get changed into some other clothes so I could help out in the kitchen. I normally helped with the cleaning of kitchen after dinner, but I asked Watari if I could go earlier today so I could spend sometime with Rose in the kitchen well she cooked and then I would help with the cleaning part of the kitchen later. He had said yes, so I had to hurry and get to the kitchen quickly. I slammed my room's door behind me, I threw my bag on my bed and quickly got undressed. I hurried over to my dresser, I opened the top draw and rummaged through it.<p>

" You'll do!" I said to myself as I took a blue t-shirt from the draw. " Now I need some jeans!"

I quickly put my t-shirt on, I closed the draw and opened the middle draw of my dresser. I found a pair of black jeans, I put them on and fastened them up well I rushed over to my dressing table. I took my friendship bracelet off, I clipped my hair up into a messy bun and put my shoes back on. I hurried out of my room, I closed the door behind me and ran along the corridor. I turned into another corridor and collided with someone. I stumbled backwards slightly, I rested my hand on the wall and looked down at a hooded person sitting on the floor as they leant back against the wall. I watched the person remove their hood, the first thing I saw was blond hair and then bright blue eyes. I covered up my mouth with both my hands as I realized it was A, I watched him rubbing the back of his head as he looked up at me with a not amused expression on his face.

" Bloody hell SJ, no running in the corridors!" He frowned. " You should know that rule by now, it's one of the first rules you learn when you move here!"

" I'm so sorry, are you okay?" I muffled from behind my hands." I really am sorry, I hope I didn't hurt you do much!"

" I'll live, but I may have permanent brain damage now..." He replied and got up from the floor. " God damn that hurt, you're like a tank when you're rushing around!"

" I said I was sorry, would you like me to get you a nurse?" I asked as I removed my hands from my face." I could walk you to the hospital ward part of the orphanage or take you to the kitchen and make you some tea. I'm sure there is a first aider in the kitchen, they will tend to your injuries..."

" I'll be fine, so what's with the rushing?" He asked as he rubbed the back of his head. " I was actually on my way to see you, I've got you something for your birthday..."

" I'm sorry, but I need to be somewhere..." I replied. " I'm on my way to the kitchen, Rose is here and I wanted to see her because I've not seen her for over 6 months! I'll come and find you later, but for now I need to be somewhere!"

" But it's your birthday, surely Rose won't mind you being a few minutes late..." He sighed, he took hold of my wrist and led me back down the corridor where I had just come from moments ago. " Come on, it won't take a moment and I swear you'll love your present or I hope you'll love it!"

" Fine, you have 10 minutes of my time and then I must go..." I sighed.

" Great!" He smiled.

I let A lead me down the corridor, we went up three flights of stairs to the very top floor of The Wammy House. I've never been to this part of the building before and by the look of it no one ever cleans up here, the corridors are so dusty. A told me this is where Watari kept all of students personal belongings and private files, I'm not sure he's even meant to be sharing any of this information with me. But he also told me that each room on this floor had security finger scanners which could be only opened by Watari, Mr Ruvie and L.

" Where are we going exactly?" I asked. " How long will this take? I'm meant to be helping out with the cooking for the Bonfire display later, I don't think the head of the kitchen will be pleased with me if I turn up late..."

" Stop worrying, I'm sure Rose will cover for you until you get there..." He replied, he stopped me in front of a door and took a key from his pocket. " We're here now anyway, I promise it will not take long..."

" I hope so, I don't want to get in trouble with Mr Ruvie again..." I sighed.

I watched A unlock the door, he let go of my wrist and opened the door. I stood on my tiptoes as I peeped over his shoulder, there was a dark staircase behind the door. I shook my head at A as he looked at me over his shoulder with a goofy smile on his face, there is no way I'm going up those stairs even if it involves a birthday present.

" I'm not going up there, it looks dirty and creepy!" I sighed.

" Oh come on SJ, it's not like it's dangerous up there or anything!" He replied as he turned around to face me. " It's not like you'll be going up those stairs alone, I'll be right behind you. I'm going to guide you up those stairs, so you don't have to worry about tripping up or anything..."

" What do you mean by guiding?" I asked.

" You've just have trust me, come on and be sport!" He replied with a smile." It will be worth it and you'll love it, I promise! I've worked really hard trying to arrange this present for you, don't let all of my hard work go to waste!"

" Okay, I guess it would be horrible if I let all of your hard work go to waste..." I sighed.

" Great!" He smiled as he took a red woolen scarf from inside of his hoody. " But I need to blindfold you first, it's a surprise after all..."

" So that's what you meant by guiding, you wanted to blindfold me so I don't see your surprise until you're ready to unveil it to me..." I said as I crossed my arms. " Why didn't you just say that in the first place?"

" Yeah, something like that..." He replied.

" Can't I just close my eyes instead?" I asked.

" You could, but I think you'd end up peeking and ruining the surprise..." He replied, he hung the scarf over his shoulder and held his hands up in front of him. " I'll cover your eyes with my hands instead, they're clean..."

" I guess your hands are better than that scarf, doesn't that scarf belong to Nonie?" I asked.

" No, it's Backup's scarf..." He replied and walked behind me. " Come on, I don't want any rats or bats or any sticky fingered children stealing what I've got for your birthday. Are you ready?"

" Okay, I'm ready..." I answered.

I felt A cover up my eyes with his hands, he slowly led me up the staircase and stopped me at the top of the stairs. He told me to keep my eyes closed and stay still, I wonder what he's up to? I listened to his footsteps walking around the room, I heard a lot of furniture being moved around and then the room went silent. I felt something brush against my hand, I jumped slightly and then heard A tell me that it was him. He took hold of both of my hands and led me forward, he stopped me again and let go of my hands.

" Can I open my eyes yet?" I asked.

" Not just yet, give me another few moments..." He replied.

" Fine, but this surprise better be worth the wait!" I smiled.

" Alright, it's ready!" I heard A say. " But I want you to count to three first before you open your eyes, have you got that?"

" Yes, I've got it!" I giggled.

I counted to three in my head, I opened my eyes to see A standing next to an old-fashioned looking table with a white cardboard box on it. I walked over to it, I removed the lid from the box to find a chocolate cake topped with cream and chopped strawberries. It's looked amazing and delicious, the smell of chocolate filled my nostrils. I felt my stomach rumble, I placed my hands on my stomach and chewed at my bottom lip as my mouth watered.

" Surprise!" I heard him say. " Happy birthday!"

" A cake?" I asked with a hint of surprise in my voice. " You brought me a whole cake for my birthday?"

" Yeah, double chocolate cake with whipped cream and topped with fresh chopped strawberries!" He replied as he took a knife from the box." I thought it was the safe bet getting you something that you could enjoy with your friends, I know you like cake and chocolate. So, do you want me to cut you a piece?"

" Well I guess I have time for a slice of cake, just a small slice..." I replied. " So yes please I would like a slice cake, it's smells fantastic..."

" Cool, why don't you take a seat over by the window..." He said as he cut into the cake with his knife. " I'll bring your piece of cake over to you, enjoy the views of the orphanage's grounds or something well you wait. You can see for miles up here, I sometimes come to think here well I study and just look out of the window. It's so peaceful up here, no one ever comes up here besides me..."

" Okay, will Backup and Nonie be joining us?" I asked. " Surely they would like a slice of cake too, did you invite them to join us?"

" I did mention to them about it, they just said maybe and continued with their daily lessons..." He replied. " Two is better than none though, right?"

" I guess, we'll have to just save them some cake..." I replied.

I walked over to the window, it was a beautiful old arched Victorian window. I sat down on the window seat, I adjusted a few of the pillows on the seat and took a look through the window. It was getting dark now, but you can see across the whole of The Wammy House's grounds. I could also see a few lights far away in the distance, those lights must belong to a few cottages that I remember passing by when Watari drove me to the orphanage. I pulled my knees to my chest, I leant back against the wall and looked over at A. He was putting the lid back on the box, he picked two plates up from the table and walked over to me. He held one of the plates towards me, I took the plate from his hand and rested it on my knees.

" The cake looks really delicious, I can't wait to try it..." I smiled

" Same here, it looks like a sugar coma waiting to happen!" He chuckled and sat down on the window seat across from me. " So what else did you get for your birthday today?"

" I got a card and a balloon from Nonie, that's about it..." I replied as I cut my cake with my spoon. " She made me a card, it was cute until I opened it. There was a rabbit on the front of the card which she had drawn and then a headless rabbit inside the card with blood pouring from its neck, I guess it's the thought that counts..."

" That sounds disturbing, but that's my sister for you..." He chuckled.

" I'm use to your sister ways now, but I like her even if she as her creepy moments..." I smiled, I spooned some of my cake into my mouth and closed my eyes as I let out a happy squeal. " Oh my god!"

" What? Is there something wrong with the cake?" He asked.

" No, this cake is so delicious!" I smiled as I spooned some more of my cake into my mouth. " Its tastes just like the cake Rose use to make me when I lived with her and my Aunt in the cottage. Where did you get it from?"

" Rose made it for me, I asked her a few weeks ago if she would make you a cake for your birthday..." He answered as he placed his plate down on the window seat. " I thought it would be nice treat seeing as it's your first birthday at The Wammy House, also it's your 14th birthday. That as to be celebrated, right?"

" I guess so, this is a really sweet of you..." I replied and spooned some more cake into my mouth. " Thank you for arranging the cake, I really appreciate it. Rose always baked me a chocolate cake on my birthday without fail, she would serve it after lunch with tea and pink wafers. My Aunt never ate any of the chocolate cake though, she was more of a fruit cake and custard person... "

" Ah shoot! If I knew about the pink wafers I would have brought some, I've not had a pink wafer for years!" He smiled. " But you're welcome, you did the same thing for me on my birthday with the toffee cheesecake you made for me. It was so delicious, remind me to ask you for the recipe at some point..."

" I'll write it down for you later, what time are Backup and Nonie meant to be getting here?" I asked as I looked through the window. " It's dark now, the bonfire display will begin in a few hours. I don't think they will have time for cake, maybe we should go and find them..."

" Yeah about that, I kind of told a few white lies..." I heard him say. " They're not coming, I just wanted to get you alone for a while. I don't really get to spend much alone time with you anymore, I kind of miss it just being me and you..."

" Oh I see, it's doesn't matter I guess..." I said as I ate some more of my cake. " I kind of miss it being just the two of us as well, we use to have so much fun as children. I guess growing up chances that and we have to learn to stand on our own two feet, do you ever think where we will be in 10 years time?"

" Sometimes I do, but 10 years is so faraway..." He replied.

" Where do you think you'll be in 10 years time?" I asked.

" Probably a private investigator, I want to earn my own money and get the hell out of this place..." He replied. " I want to be my own boss, I don't want to be under the panda detective's control forever. I want to make a mark on the world, not in the way L does it but in my own way. I want to help people, but I also want to show them that they don't have to be scared of the dark or fear criminals and just show them that there is still good people left in this world will are willing to bend over backwards to help them. How about you? Where do you see yourself in 10 years?"

" Living back at my Aunt's cottage with an army of cat babies and maybe running some of my Aunt's charities in her name, I'm really not sure yet..." I replied and licked some cream away from my bottom lip. " I also want to go traveling, I want to see all the wonderful places in the world!"

" Really? I thought you'd have said married with children or something a long those lines, I see you as a homely person..." He chuckled. " But travelling, that sounds fun..."

" I don't know if I want children, you have to share your belongings with them and take care of them forever!" I laughed. " But who knows, no one can really tell the future or where we will be in 10 years time. I just hope I still know you then, you're my friend for life!"

" What about Backup and Nonie?" He asked.

" They can be the background figurines, I still want them in my life sometimes..." I replied.

" Can I ask you something?" He asked.

" Sure!" I replied and continued to eat my cake. " What would you like to know?"

" This may sound weird or just frighten you to death which I hope it doesn't because that would make me sad knowing that I caused your death, but I just wanted to ask you something..." He replied. " I don't know how to word what about to say to you, but I'm just going to say it straight out, okay?"

" Okay!" I smiled.

" Elizabeth, would you like to be my girlfriend or companion?" He asked. " I'm not sure how relationships work at The Wammy House, I'm not even sure if I'm allowed to have relationships with female students here. But I like you, I've like you for a very long time and I respect you as a human being. I'm waffling, but I'm so nervous right now!"

I stopped my spoon near my mouth and stared at him, did he just ask me to be his girlfriend? I slowly ate the piece of cake from my spoon, I let go of my spoon and let it hang from my mouth. I felt my spoon fall from my mouth, I heard it clink on my plate and I continued to stare at him. I watched his him raise his eyebrow at me, he had a confused look on his face. I felt something dribble down my chin, I quickly wiped some drool away from my chin and bit at my bottom lip as I looked away from his gaze.

" That wasn't the reaction I was hoping for SJ, forget I said anything..." He said and got up from the window seat. " I'll see you at the Bonfire display, I hope this doesn't affect our friendship..."

" A wait, don't go yet!" I said.

I quickly got up from the window seat, I wrapped my arms around him and snuggled my face into his chest. I felt him wrap his arms around me, he rested his chin on the top of my head and softly chuckled. I gently pulled him away from me and looked up at him, he had a smile on his face. I smiled back at him, I stood on my tiptoes and softly kissed his cheek. I wrapped my arms back around him and sighed as a smile crept across my face.

" I like you too, I accept your offer..." I said.


	24. Together

**Hey, Nukia here!**

**This fanfiction is a side story to Beyond This Love.**

**I don't know if any of my old readers are reading my rewrites anymore, but I'm going to keep going. This is another random chapter, I like doing character development and writing random ideas. **

**But thank you for the reviews, favorites and the alerts! Also to the unknown people who read my fanfictions, I promise it will pick up at some point! If you don't like it, then don't read it.**

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter 24!<strong>

I ended up staying with A for over an hour in the attic, we sat and talked about what we were going to do about our relationship. We decided in the end that it would be best if we kept it to ourselves for now, it will be our little secret until the time was right to share it with everyone else in the orphanage. I glanced at A's watch and realized I was late for my kitchen duties, I said my goodbyes to him and quickly left the attic. I hurried all the way to the ground floor of The Wammy House, I ran along the corridor that led to the kitchen and stopped when I got to the kitchen door. I stood on my tiptoes and looked through the window of the door, the kitchen staff were all busy preparing meals for the students. I wiped my mouth with my hand, I took a deep breath as I opened the door to the kitchen and entered the room. I smiled at a couple of the kitchen staff and said hello to them, none of them seemed to be bothered that I was late. I spotted Rose taking some jacket potatoes out of the oven, I walked over to the coat rack and smiled at the head of the kitchen.

" Sorry I'm late Mrs Milder, I had to finish some course work before I came down to help!" I said as I took a white apron from the coat rack and quickly put it on. " It won't happen again, I will make up the time!"

" It's fine, you don't have to make up the time..." She said as she held a hairnet towards me. " Pop this on and get stuck in, we've got 2 hours left until dinner is served. You can go and help Rose with the jacket potatoes, Mr Wammy as arranged everything so you don't have to worry..."

" Thank you Mrs Milder!" I smiled.

I took the hairnet from her hand, I put it on and tucked some of my loose strands of hair inside of it as I stopped by the table Rose was working at for the evening. She gave me a hug when she saw me, she told me that she had missed me and she also told me about her new tea house business she had opened in a cottage not far from here. Apparently her business is doing really well, I'm happy she's doing something she wants to do with her life now.

" What do you want me to do?" I asked.

" Well my dear, I need someone to grate that block of cheese for me..." She answered as she removed some tinfoil from a tray. " I know it's not an exciting job, but it needs to be done for the jacket potatoes. Remember to cut the cheese into smaller blocks first, I don't want a repeat performance like the time you grated your knuckles inside of the cheese. I don't think shredded knuckle jacket potatoes sounds very appetizing, do you?"

" I was 9 when that happened, I've grown up loads since then..." I smiled.

" That is true, you're not my little Elizabeth anymore..." She chuckled. " Let's stop gasp-bagging, we've got a job to do! We can have a little chat at the Bonfire display, I'll be there to serve the food and keep an eye on some of the young ones for Mr Wammy..."

" Okay..." I nodded.

I grated the cheese like Rose had asked me to do, I topped the jacket potatoes with the cheese and then wrapped the potatoes in tinfoil to keep them warm. I also helped with the toffee apples, it seems that Watari pushed the boat out when it came to calendar events. When I had finished in the kitchen I helped to take all the food to a little white marquee that was setup on the grounds, there were tables and chairs set out as well. Some of the students had helped to build a bonfire, it wasn't to big and some of the younger students had made a Guy Fawkes that looked like Mr Ruvie.

I said goodbye to the kitchen staff, I needed to go and get changed for the Bonfire display. It was getting cold out, so I had decided to wear my jeans and a t-shirt. I quickly got changed in my room, I put my red coat on and found my pair of black woolen gloves in my dressing table's draw. I stuffed them into my coat pocket, I put my white fluffy earmuffs on and fastened up my coat. I left my room, I hurried along the corridor and made my way to the main entrance of The Wammy House. I followed behind a group of young students as they walked through the entrance's doorway and down the stone steps to the pathway, it seemed that most of the students were already outside.

The Bonfire had already been lit, I saw Watari standing with a group of students and Mr Ruvie. I walked over to the food marquee, I walked inside of the it and smiled at Rose. The marquee was quiet empty with only a few students eating chocolate covered oranges in the corner of the marquee, I picked a chocolate apple from a tray and took a look at the rest of the food. There was jacket potatoes topped with cheese, toffee apples, chocolate covered strawberries, prawn balls, hot homemade vegetable soup, BBQ chicken, chips, sausage rolls and meat filled pies.

" Is that all you're having my love?" I heard Rose ask." Your Aunt would be spinning in her grave if she knew you were not eating the right kind of foods, come and have some of this vegetable soup..."

" I'm not that hungry right now, I'll come back in a while for some savory food..." I replied and took a bite out of my chocolate apple. " Save me some of the soup, I think I'll be needing it later seeing as it's cold outside of the marquee..."

" Okay my dear, you go and have some fun!" She smiled.

I said goodbye to Rose, I left the marquee and went to join a few of the other students. I spoke to a few of them until they decided to get something to eat, I continued to eat my chocolate apple and stared at the Bonfire. I felt someone take hold of my hand, I looked over my shoulder to see A siding behind me with a smile on his face. I gave him a quick smile and pulled my hand away from his hand and laughed softly as I pushed him away from me.

" You've got chocolate around your mouth, you're such a messy eater!" He chucked and gently nudged me with his arm. " I can't take you anywhere without you making a show of yourself, it's a good job you've got me to look after you from now on..."

" I'm an embarrassment to myself, thank you for telling me..." I said as I wiped my mouth with the back of my hand. " You shouldn't really be holding my hand in front of the other students, what if someone saw us? We're meant to be keeping it a secret, we've just got to act discreet at public events so no one notices..."

" Alright, so how did the cooking go in the kitchen?" He asked. " Looking at all the different kinds of food in the marquee is telling me that it went all to plan, so much food! I've already ate three toffee apples, two jacket potatoes and some spicy prawn ball thingys with a creamy chive dip. I've got my eyes set on some of those meat filled pies as well, I'll be sleep tonight!"

" It went well, I helped to make the toffee apples and topped the jacket potatoes with cheese. Did you try the chocolate covered oranges yet?" I asked with a laugh. " You're so greedy, save some food for the rest of us!"

" Hey, I'm a growing boy!" He smiled.

" That old excuse is wearing thin now, I don't believe you..." I smiled, I took a bite of my chocolate apple and licked some apple juice away from my lips. " These chocolate apples are delicious, I've had so much chocolate today. I'll end up having a sugar high for the rest of the night, I won't able to sleep for hours which is probably a good thing. I have a paper I need to finish for literacy by tomorrow, maybe I should try those chocolate covered oranges after all..."

" Nothing wrong with a lot sugar in your diet, it keeps your brain ticking..." He said as he glanced around at the other students. " I've got a secret, can I whisper it in your ear?"

" Sure, be quick well no one is looking..." I replied.

I felt A place his hand on the lower part of my back, he leant forward towards my ear and began to whisper into my ear. He told me that the cheese was the best part of the jacket potatoes, he also told me that I looked cute in a hairnet. I bit at my bottom lip and looked down at the ground as I felt myself blush, he's such a sweet person. I laughed quietly as he continued to whisper nonsense into my ear, I looked up from the ground at the Bonfire and saw Nonie watching me. She was standing with a group of young students near a table full of hot drinks, I gently nudged A away from me with my elbow and spoke quietly to him.

" I think we have caught Nonie attention, I think you should go and mingle with a few other students for a while..." I said quietly with a smile. " We can meet up later when the fireworks begin, I will go and sit on that bench over there until then..."

" Nonie is always watching us, you shouldn't take it personally like I've said to you once before..." He said and put his hands in his coat pockets. " But I get what you mean, I was kind of public displaying it far too much to just now. I'm going to see where Backup is hiding, I've not seen him for over an hour now. Maybe I'll try some of those chocolate covered oranges you spoke about, they sound good. Do you want anything from the food marquee?"

" Soup, I would like a cup of soup please..." I replied.

" Alright, I'll hang inside of the marquee for a while and meet you after that with your soup..." He smiled." I'll see you in a while, don't get anymore chocolate around your mouth well I'm gone!"

" Okay..." I nodded.

I watched A walk over to the marquee where they were serving the food, I took a bite of my chocolate apple and walked over to the bench. I sat down on it and watched some children running around with rainbow sparklers in their hands. I looked over at the Bonfire when I heard some children laughing, someone had thrown the Guy Fawkes on the bonfire to early. I saw Mr Ruivie walking over to the group of young children yelling and waving his arms around in the air, I couldn't help but laugh at him. I felt someone sit down on the bench, I looked over to see Backup perch on the other end of the bench with a plate full of chocolate covered strawberries and potato wedges.

" The mischief of children, isn't it delightful?" He said with a smirk as he rested a chocolate covered strawberry against his lips." Look at the Guy Fawkes burn, fire is an impressive way to cleanse the human body you know. It burns all of your sins away and leaves you vulnerable, basically innocent all over again..."

" A is looking for you, why don't you go and find him..." I replied. " He went in the food marquee about 5 minutes ago for some more food, he's been wondering where you've been hiding for the last hour. But looking at you now I see you've raided the food marquee, I'm surprised there is any food left for the other students with you pair around..."

" I have already seen him, he was talking to a girl called Autumn about Pavlova and toasted marshmallows..." He chuckled, he held his plate towards me and popped the chocolate covered strawberry into his mouth. " Would you like strawberry? The saltiness of the wedges as soaked into the chocolate, they taste rather good in a rather strange way..."

" I'm okay thank you, but thank you for your kind offer..." I replied.

" You're welcome, I guess that means there will be more for me..." He smirked.

I turned my attention away from Backup, I listened to him eating his food and sighed deeply to myself. I took another bite of my chocolate apple and continued to watch Mr Ruvie yelling at the group of children near the bonfire.

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><p>I've been seeing A for over 6 months now in secret, we just act normal around our friends and the other students so we don't draw any attention to us. We spend an hour a day together in the library or the attic or just walking the orphanage's ground, it's easier this way and no one suspects a thing. I have woken early this morning, it was 6:15am and I was going to go out running with A. He normally went running with Backup, but Backup was in isolation again for stealing chemicals from the science lab. We had arranged it with Watari, he was fine with it because he preferred students to go running in pairs or groups in case anything happened well we were out.<p>

I had to get dressed in my gym kit which was a pair of black shorts and a green t-shirt, I didn't own any clothes for running. I tied my hair up into a messy bun, I put my blue coloured sneakers on and left my room. I quietly closed the door behind me, most of the students didn't wake up till 7am. I walked along the corridor as I curled a piece of my hair around my finger, I heard a few children laughing from one of the rooms as I passed by it and laughed to myself. I hurried down the two flights of stairs to the ground floor, I waved to a few cleaners on the main staircase and walked through the main entrances of The Wammy House.

I ran down the stone steps and jumped from the last step, it was a nice this morning. The sun was shining, the birds were singing and the whole of the orphanage's grounds were empty. I did a few stretches well I waited for A, I shook my hands and feet well I gently jogged on the spot. I sighed as I turned around to face the stairs, what's taking him so long? I walked over to the steps, I sat down on one of them and stretched my legs out in front of me. I looked over my shoulder when I heard footsteps, I saw A standing at the top of the stone steps and I smiled at him as I got up from the step. He was dressed in grey jogging bottoms, a white hoody with finger-less black gloves and white sneakers.

" What took you so long?" I asked.

" I overslept, I was up till 1am finishing a few essays..." He replied as he jogged down the steps towards me. " Are you ready? I'm only going to take you for a short jog alone a trail in the woods, I'll go easy on you..."

" Yes, I've even stretched well I was waiting for you..." I replied.

" Good, let's go then!" He smiled.

I watched him jog past me, I followed after him down the pathway and pulled my shorts up as I jogged. It wasn't long until we got to an old green iron gate that led into the woods, he opened the gate and held it open for me. I walked through the gateway, I carried on walking down the trail and stopped by a tree. I pulled my shorts up again as I saw A jog past me, I quickly followed after him and tried to keep up with him.

" Slow down!" I said as I managed to catch up with him. " I thought you were going to go easy on me, will you please jog at my pace!"

" I am going easy on you, it's not my fault if you've got short legs!" He chuckled.

" Hey!" I laughed as I quickened my jogging pace and overtook him. " Take that back!"

" I'm telling the truth though, you're short!" He said. " Try and keep up with me!"

I saw A sprint past me, I began to run as fast as I could down the trail. A is a really fast runner, but I guess he as to stay fit and healthy for his future career. I began to pant as I ran up a hilly part of the trail, I stumbled a few times on some twigs and stones. I began to slow down as felt a sharp pain my side, I stopped by a tree and yelled to A.

" My side hurts, I think I've pulled something!" I yelled.

I watched A spin around and run back down the trail. He stopped in front of me, he wrapped his arms around me and kissed the top of my head as he whispered sorry to me. He pulled himself away from me, he walked over to the edge of the trail and unzipped his hoody.

" Are you alright?" He asked.

" I think I've got a stitch, I need to sit down for a while!" I panted, I rested my hand on a tree and placed my other hand on my side. " I don't know how you do this every morning, this is the first time I've ever been jogging in the woods and I'm exhausted already! I know I take gym class, but this is not like climbing a rope or sparring or tennis! My feet are killing me too, my chests hurts and now I'm realizing how unfit I am!"

" You'll get use to it, you just have to run each day and your body will get use to it!" He said as he stretched his hands above his head. " Come and sit down by the stream, you can bathe your feet in the stream well you take a break..."

I nodded my head and carefully walked down a little slope, A was already by the stream taking his sneakers off. I stumbled on a few stones before I got to the stream, I sat down next him and removed my sneakers. I placed them down next to me, I took my socks off and dipped my feet into the stream. The water was freezing, but it felt so good on my aching feet. I let out a squeal as A splashed me, I kicked some water back at him and laughed when it splashed him in his face.

" So mean!" He whined and wiped the water away from his face with his hoody's sleeve. " I'm soaked through now, it's a good job I love you or you'd be floating down the stream by now..."

" You love me?" I asked.

" Yeah, I guess I do love you..." He replied, he tucked some of my hair behind my ear and ran his hand down neck to my shoulder. " Have I ever told you that you're as short as tree stump?"

" Hey, no more short jokes!" I frowned with a laugh and shooed his hand away from my shoulder. " Now that was mean, take that back! I can't help being short, it's in my genetics from my Mother's side!"

" I was joking, I take it back!" He laughed.

" I know, I was just teasing you..." I smiled as I cupped arms with him and took hold of his hand. " It's so quiet and still in this part of the woods, do you come here often?"

" That just sounded like a bad chat up line, but yes I come here sometimes. Me and Backup always jog past the stream and climb a few trees further along the stream, there is an old tree house further down the trail as well..." He replied as he pointed down the stream. " Do you know if you follow this stream you'll end up at that bridge near to where you use to live, your cottage is about 9 miles from here..."

" Really?" I asked.

" Yeah, also if you keep following this stream you'll end up at a little cabin where me and Backup sometimes study..." He replied. " We'll be going there again in a few weeks time for private studies with L and Watari. It gets us away from the bustle of The Wammy House, we get to experience a few different lessons well we're there too..."

" What kind of lessons?" I asked.

" I can't tell you, its confidential information..." He replied, he let go of my hand and got up from the ground. " Come on, we better be getting back before breakfast is served. I've got to shower before the days lessons begin as well, I've also got to make sure Nonie is awake. She's got a habit of oversleeping these days, I think she's studying to hard..."

I quickly put my socks and sneakers back on, I got up from the ground and brushed some dirt away from my butt. I walked with A back up the slope, we walked back along the wood's trail and made our way back to The Wammy House.


	25. Gone Far To Long

**Hey, Nukia here!**

**This fanfiction is a side story to Beyond This Love.**

**I don't know if any of my old readers are reading my rewrites anymore, but I'm going to keep going. This chapter is weird, I'm going to show you what SJ and A's relationship is like in private. I think I made it to eww, but there is random and learning moments too. **

**But thank you for the reviews, favorites and the alerts! Also to the unknown people who read my fanfictions, I promise it will pick up at some point! If you don't like it, then don't read it.**

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter 25!<strong>

I glanced at my cat shaped calendar holder on my dressing table, it was the 10th of October. It will be A's 15th birthday in 3 days time, I have no idea what to get him. I guess I could just make him a toffee cheesecake like I did last year, it seems like the easy option and he enjoyed eating it. I looked at my reflection in my mirror as I fixed my wonky collar on my red dress, I got up from my chair at the dressing table and walked over to my room's door. I unlocked the door, I walked over to my bed and quickly made it. I put the rest of my books in my bag, I zipped it up and looked over at my room's door when I heard it open.

I smiled when A peeped his head around my door, I beckoned him to come in and quickly tied my hair up into ponytail. He closed the door behind him, I rushed over to him and zipped up his white hoody for him. He placed his hands on my hips and laughed slightly when I brushed his down with my hands, it looks like he's got dressed in the dark again.

" Good morning!" I smiled.

" Hey..." He smiled as he gently pressed his nose against my nose. " How are you today?"

" I'm good, I've missed you..." I replied.

" You saw me about 9 hours ago, but I understand how you could miss me because I'm so intelligent and have a handsome jawline as you once told me..." He smiled. " So I get why you'd miss me, I'm just to awesome..."

" So vain, I have never said that to you!" I laughed and wrapped my arms around his neck. " You're so full off yourself sometimes, as anyone ever told you that before?"

" Nope, but it was worth a shot to see if I could get a compliment out of you..." He chuckled.

" Silly A, you're perfect to me..." I smiled.

" Good, that means I don't have to change for you..." He smirked as he brushed his lips against my lips. " You should finish getting ready for class, we'll end up being late again..."

" Okay, I'll be quick!" I smiled.

I let A softly kiss my lips as he pulled me closer towards him, I squealed slightly as he tickled my sides with his finger tips and laughed. I gently pushed him away from me, I walked over to my dressing table and took my bag from the back of my chair. I hung my bag over my shoulder, I applied some of my cherry flavoured chapstick to my lips and looked at my reflection in the mirror.

" How are you feeling today?" I asked and put my chapstick in my bag. " Hopefully better than yesterday I hope, I know Mr Ruvie as been giving you more of a hard time than usual about your studies..."

" I'm alright, I'm use to Mr Ruvie being a jerk now anyway. He just thinks I need to concentrate more, apparently my attention span as been slipping in lessons which is affecting my studies. But like every other student in the orphanage whose mind doesn't wonder from time to time? It's basically a normal human characteristic, who really concentrates on a task without becoming distracted for a few seconds?" He asked and sat down on my bed. " But on a good note, I'm here to walk you to class..."

" That's very thoughtful of you, I've just got to put my shoes on and I'll be ready to go..." I smiled, I turned around to face him and leant on the back of my chair. " Do you know what? I think I'm the one distracting you, maybe I should stay away from you for a while so you can concentrate on your studies..."

" Don't be daft, you're my good distraction!" He smiled.

" I guess that's good to know, I'm just going to grab my shoes from the bathroom..." I said as I began to walk towards my bathroom's door. " I left them in there last night, they were all muddy from that walk we took through the cemetery..."

" Alright, take your time..." He said.

I walked into the bathroom, I put my shoes on and switched the light off. I closed the bathroom's door behind me, I leant back against the door as I watched A reading his beeper. He got up from my bed and put his beeper into his hoody pocket as he walked over to my room's door, I wonder where he his going? I loudly cleared my throat, I watched him stopped at my room's door and look at me over his shoulder.

" I'm sorry, I need to go..." He said as he opened my room's door. " I'll come and find you later, I've been called to Watari's office..."

" Okay, but it's not very polite to leave without saying goodbye..." I smiled. " It's bad manners, have I not taught you anything over the years about manners?"

" Erm tea is not proper without a saucer, I remember that one..." He replied.

" And what else?" I asked.

" I'm sorry, my mind was else where..." He replied with a smile and closed my room's door. " Come here and give me some sugar with cream before I go!"

I rolled my eyes as I walked over to him, for some reason he uses the words sugar with cream when he wants a kiss and a hug. I wrapped my arms around his waist, I felt A kiss the top of my head and pull me away from him. I stood on my tiptoes as I quickly kissed his lips, I rested my hands on his arms and looked up at him.

" So much for you walking me to class today, I like you walking me to class first thing in the morning..." I sighed.

" I know, I'll walk you to the end of the corridor instead..." He smiled.

" Okay, I guess that will have to do..." I giggled.

I switched my room's light off as A opened the door, we both left my room and walked down the corridor together. I said goodbye to him at the end of the corridor and made my way down the ground floor of the building. I continued to walk along the corridor and saw a few students leaving the science lab, I wonder what is going on? I walked into the classroom and stopped in the doorway, the class room was empty. I looked back into the corridor, I saw three teachers rushing up the main staircase of the orphanage and chewed at my bottom lip. I shrugged my shoulders, I walked back into the class room and took my normal seat. I took all of my books out of my bag, I glanced up at the Science lab's clock and saw that it was only 9:15am.

" I'll meet you in the library in 10 minutes!" I heard a female's voice say from outside of the class room. " I've got to collect my books first from the science lab, I'll be quick!"

I looked over at the class room's doorway and saw Autumn walk into the class room. She gave me a smile as she made her way over to her desk, she stopped next to her desk and took her bag from the back of the chair. She began to put her books into her bag, I watched her for a while and got up from my desk as I cleared my throat.

" Excuse me Autumn, but what is going on?" I asked. " Where are all the other students?"

" Haven't you heard, one of the students Watari had sent to Los Angeles for a month at some university as gone missing!" She replied." Kidnapped in broad daylight from the campus grounds by a group thugs in front of all the students there!"

" That's awful, what's the student's name?" I asked.

" Elèanore, she's in the same science class as us and her twin sister Adèle. They sit in the third row, second desk to the front of the classroom. I've heard Adèle is devastated over the news, she's had to be sedated and put under the care of Nurse Clark... " She answered as she picked her book bag up from her desk and hung it over her shoulder. " This mornings lessons have all been cancelled, all the teachers have been called into an urgent meeting with Watari and Mr Ruvie. I'll see you later, I'm going to do some research on lobotomies in the library..."

" Okay, I will see you later..." I nodded.

I watched Autumn leave the science lab, I sighed to myself as I got up from my desk and packed all my books back into my bag. Poor Elèanore, she must be so scared and I feel so sorry for her sister. This explains why A had to leave in a hurry instead of walking me to class, I guess he will be helping Watari to try and find Elèanore. I hung my bag over my shoulder and left the classroom, I'm not sure what I will do with my free morning though. I carried on walking down the corridor, I noticed a few students sitting on the main entrance's staircase well they spoke quietly amongst each other. I twirled my ponytail around my finger as I headed towards the stairs that led to the second floor of the orphanage, I stopped at the bottom of them when I noticed Backup and A along the corridor. I watched them for a while well they spoke to each other, they seemed to be in a deep conversation.

" I wonder what they are talking about?" I asked myself.

I sat down on one of the steps of the stairs, I continued to watch them until Backup made eye contact with me. I quickly hurried up a few of the steps, I sat back down again and opened my bag. I took a Mars bar from my bag, I ripped some of the wrapper away from the chocolate bar and took a bite of it. I continued to eat my chocolate bar until A peeped his head from behind the wall at the bottom of the stairs, I wiped my mouth with the back of my hand and gave him a smile. He dropped a blue duffel bag at the bottom of the stairs, he leant his shoulder against the wall and crossed his arms as a smirk crept across his face.

" Are you spying on me?" He asked.

" No, I was on my way to my room and then decided to have a quick snack on the stairs..." I replied and put my Mars bar back into my bag. " I'm going to take a nap, all this mornings lessons have been cancelled due to a terrible incident involving one of the students..."

" I know, I've already heard..." He sighed, he picked his duffel bag up from the floor and hung it over his shoulder. " Do you want me to walk you to your room?"

" I can find my own way there, but thank you for the offer..." I smiled and got up from the step. "Are you going somewhere?"

" Yeah, how did you guess?" He asked.

" You've got your duffel bag with you, the only time I've seen you carrying it is when you're going traveling with Watari and your mentor..." I replied. " Where are you going this time?"

" I'm going to Los Angeles, there as been a state of emergency called in an American Government funded orphanage owned by one of Watari's business contacts. I guess you've heard what's happened from the other students?" He asked. " Apparently it indicates a human trafficking racket was involved in Elèanore's abduction, it's a very serious matter. Don't tell anyone I told you that though, it's meant to be kept under wraps so it doesn't scare any of the other students..."

" That's awful, poor Elèanore..." I muttered.

" Watari is frantic over the news, I've never seen him act like this before. But Elèanore is one of his students so I understand why he his acting this way, he will use all of his resources and connections to get her back... " He sighed as he looked both ways down the corridor and took hold of my hand. " Will you come with me for a moment, I need a private word with you..."

" Sure..." I nodded.

I let A lead me down the corridor, he stopped me outside of a door labeled Janitor's Closet and opened the door. He gently pushed me into the dark small room, he closed the door behind him and switched on a light. I leant back against the wall and looked around the room, it wasn't the most hygienic of places. There was buckets, smelly mops, brooms and different kinds of cleaning detergents bottles in one corner of room. I looked over at A as he rummaged around in his coat's pockets, he took something out of his pocket and stepped towards me.

" I need to tell you something, it's about Los Angeles..." He said as he took hold of my hand and pulled me closer towards him. " I don't know how long I'll be gone for this time, I maybe gone over 5 months or even a longer. I wanted to tell you that I'm going to miss you, this is going to be the longest time I've ever been away from you since we were children..."

" It's okay, I'll be right here when you get back from America..." I smiled. " I'll miss you too though, but we can stay in touch with each other well you're away right?"

" I'm not sure if I can this time, I'm going to have to break connections with everyone outside of America for safety reasons. I won't be able to ring Backup either, so you really won't hear from me this time..." He answered. " I just wanted to get a private moment with you before I left and give you a parting gift. I know it's not much, but I don't have anything of value on me right now..."

" That's not fair, but I understand..." I sighed.

" I'll be back before you know it, you'll be sick of seeing my face at some point..." He chuckled, he placed something in my hand and smiled. " Here, hold onto this for me until I return. Take real good care of it, they're my favorites..."

I looked down at my hand and let out a quiet laugh, there was a toffee in the palm of my hand. It was wrapped in gold and silver paper, it's a strange parting gift. But this is A after all, I looked up from my hand at him and laughed again.

" A toffee?" I asked.

" Yeah, it's the only thing I've got on me right now for a parting gift..." He replied with a chuckle. " But as long as you have that toffee in your possession, then I'm coming back to you. I can't leave one of my precious toffees behind uneaten, it would be like blasphemy!"

" You're funny, I'll keep it safe until you return..." I smiled, I unzipped my bag and put the toffee into my bag's side pocket. " I guess I should give you something, let me see what I've got in my bag..."

I rummaged around in my bag, I found a couple of mints and my half eaten chocolate bar. I chewed at my bottom lip as I continued to rummage in my bag, I smiled to myself when I found the perfect thing he could take with him. I took my cherry flavoured chapstick from my bag, I held it towards him and sniffled.

" I'm sorry, this is all I have on me..." I said.

" Your chapstick? Yeah my bag is going to look so manly going through the airport's baggage scanner with that in my bag!" He chuckled and took it from my hand. " But thank you, I'll make sure I'll keep it safe until I return home. You'll keep an eye on Nonie for me, right? She's been acting weird lately, she refuses to talk to me about a few things..."

" Sure, I'll make sure she okay..." I nodded.

" I'll see you really soon, I promise..." He smiled.

A softy kissed my forehead, he pulled me into a hug and kissed the side of my head. I closed my eyes and snuggled my face into his shoulder, I wish he didn't have to go to Los Angeles. He gently pulled me away from him, he kissed my forehead again and then quickly left the janitor's closet. I sighed to myself as I let myself slide down the wall, I sat down on the floor and wrapped my arms around my legs. I'm going to miss him a lot, I hope he's not away for to long.

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><p>It's been 4 months since A left to go to Los Angeles, none of us have heard from him since then. Nonie as become withdraw and quiet around me, she won't even sit next to me in the dinner hall anymore. She seems to talk to Backup still, I've asked him if she is okay and all he tells me is she's going through changes. I'm not sure if he means girl changes or educational changes, he's never clear about it.<p>

I closed my room's window and locked it, it was coming up to 9pm. It was time for all the students to go to bed, I drew my curtains and looked over at my room's door when I heard a gently knocking on it. I climbed off my bed and walked over to the door, I wonder who that could be at this hour? I unlocked my door, I opened it and saw Nonie standing in the corridor. She was wearing her sunglasses again, she was dressed in her plan black pajamas and wore no shoes.

" Can I come in?" She asked.

" Sure, is everything okay?" I asked.

" Not really, I think I need help..." She replied and walked into my room. " I know I've been a jerk around you lately, but I need someone new to talk to about something. I know my brother thinks highly of you, so maybe I could share my little problem with you instead of concerning him when he returns back to the orphanage..."

" Okay, take a seat on my bed..." I smiled.

I closed my room's door, I watched Nonie sit down on my bed. She grabbed one if my pillows from the end of my bed, she crossed her legs and stared at me. I bit at my bottom lips as I walked over to my bed, I sat down on it and wrapped myself in one of my blankets.

" So, what is your problem?" I asked. " Is it about boys or girls private matters or maybe something to do with your studies. I'll try my best to help you, but I'm afraid my information about boys is nonexistent..."

" Boys?" She asked with laugh. " Don't make me laugh, I've got no interests in boys at this very moment, especially ones living in orphanage. Besides, I don't think my brother would be to pleased if I started seeing boys at the age of 14, do you?"

" I guess not, so what is wrong exactly?" I asked.

" My problem is kind of peculiar, I thought Backup would have understood seeing as he as the same condition than me..." She answered as she hugged my pillow and sighed. " But his explanations are always bizarre, but he's not very clear at times. I can't ask my brother for help because he would just freak out or he wouldn't understand, also I have no idea how to get in touch with him well he's in Los Angeles because Mr Ruvie is being an asshole and will not give me his phone number! So I've decided to ask you instead, that's if you can be any help to me..."

" Okay, so may I ask what your condition is?" I asked.

" It's hard to explain it in words, I will have to show you..." She replied as she tucked her blonde hair behind her ears. " Promise not to freak out, if you scream then we'll both be in trouble seeing as I'm meant to be in my room right now..."

" Okay, I promise that I won't scream..." I said.

I watched Nonie remove her sunglasses, she looked down at my pillow as she placed them down on my bed. She slowly looked up from the pillow at me and shrugged her shoulders at me with an odd smile on her face. My eyes grew wide, her eyes were bright Red instead of their normal brown colour. I crawled over to her, I sat down next to her and took a closer look at her eyes. I understand why she thought she could talk to Backup about her eyes now, his eyes are red too under the dark coloured contact lenses he normally wears in his day-to-day life.

" Do you want me to take a picture, it will last longer!" She frowned.

" I'm sorry, I didn't mean to stare..." I said quietly. " So this is the reason you've been wearing sunglasses for the past year?"

" Yeah, I didn't want to draw any attention to myself..." She answered. " Watari, L and Backup are the only people who knows about it. Well including you now, but you've got to promise not to tell A. He would defiantly freak out over my eyes, I've tried to wear coloured contact lenses but they make my eyes feel sore and uncomfortable..."

" I won't say anything to him, but you can't wear sunglasses forever..." I sighed.

" I know, I think Watari is researching into other lenses for me to try..." She said, she put her sunglasses back on and placed my pillow at the end of my bed. " There is a type of contact lens called silicone hydrogel lenses, apparently they're more of a softer lens which will be better for my eyes. I won't be wearing contact lenses all the time, just for day-to-day lessons and events. The rest of the time I will be wearing sunglasses, I don't want to draw any attention to myself or be branded as different..."

" I see, so does this mean your eyes are the same as Backups or does everything he always tells me just make-believe?" I asked. " He always talks about lifespans and other strange things, does he speak the truth? I mean if I heard it from you then maybe I would believe what he says in the future, but I know he as the tendencies to over exaggerate at times..."

" I think its best not to question what Backup says to you, if I was you I'd ignore everything he says and get on with your life..." She replied. " But for now I'm going back to my room before Mr Ruvie begins his night-time rounds, I don't think I want a weeks study detention for roaming the halls after lights out..."

" Okay, you're best taking the long way back to your room. A once told me that Mr Ruvie starts his rounds from the first floor, so by the time you've gotten to your room he will be on the second floor..." I smiled. " Unless his rounds routine as changed, then you will been seen which is very rare in your case because you're a good snooper..."

" Why would A tell you something like that? Do you both sneak around The Wammy House after lights out and cause some chaos?" She asked with a smirk and chuckled as she walked over to my room's door. " Raiding the fridge no doubt, having a midnight snack when no one else is looking instead of sleeping. I know what my brother is like when it comes to food, his eyes are bigger than his belly. Anyway,I'm going to my room now..."

" It's not like that, we don't sneak around after lights out!" I said as I then gasped and quickly covered up my mouth after I realized what I had said. " I mean he told me Mr Ruvie's light's out routine in case there was an emergency or I needed to make a quick escape, nothing sneaky about it at all!"

" What did you say?" She asked, she took hold of the door handle and looked at me over shoulder with a smirk on her face. " Is there something I should know about? Are my suspicions correct about what I've thought for the last several months or have I been misled by your random babble?"

" I said nothing suspicious, it was random babble like you said..." I replied.

" You're hiding something from me, I'll get to the truth in the end..." She said.

" I'm not hiding anything, goodnight..." I replied as I removed my hand from my mouth and smiled at her. " You better go before you get caught, I'll see you at breakfast..."

" I've got my eye on you, both of them from now on..." She smirked. " Goodnight, sweet dreams and remember to not let the bed bugs bite!"

I watched Nonie leave my room, I got up from my bed and walked over to the door. I locked my room's door and leant back against it as I sighed. I nearly put my foot in it then, I need to start watching what I am saying in front of people. At least I understand why Nonie is always wearing sunglasses now, but I don't understand why she told me not to question what Backup says to me. She didn't even tell me if what he says is true, maybe I should get on with my life and ignore what he tells me from now on. I switched my room's light off, I walked over my bed and settled down for the night.


	26. Trick or Treat

**Hey, Nukia here!**

**This fanfiction is a side story to Beyond This Love.**

**I don't know if any of my old readers are reading my rewrites anymore, but I'm going to keep going. This chapter is random, I just keep getting random ideas. I'll get to the serious stuff at some point, but I call random chapters character building. **

**But thank you for the reviews, favorites and the alerts! Also to the unknown people who read my fanfictions, I promise it will pick up at some point! If you don't like it, then don't read it.**

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><p><strong>Chapter 26!<strong>

Another 8 months had gone by and still no sign of A, I'm really beginning to worry about him now. I've approached Mr Ruvie several times with Nonie and asked if he could tell us if he his okay, but Mr Ruvie just sent us away with a few harsh words. Nonie even broke into his office to try and find a phone number for Watari, but there is no records of their location or contact details on file. It's like they have all disappeared of the face of the earth, I just want him to come back home.

It was now the 31st of October and a few of the students wanted to celebrate Halloween with a fancy dress party this year, I'm surprised that Mr Ruvie had even said yes to their idea. I'm not in the mood for parties right now, I don't feel like celebrating any kind of holiday without A being around to join in with the fun. But I got talked into helping a few of the younger students to get dressed into their costumes that Mr Ruvie's niece May had made for them and paint their faces with costume makeup. Nonie had volunteered to help out with the younger students as well, she had gotten close with two of the younger students and took them under her wing.

I must have spent at least an hour painting cat whiskers, fake cuts, skeleton faces and butterflies on student's faces. When I had finished painting the last student's face, I begin to put all of the face paints back into the box on the table and noticed Nonie messing with a few costumes on one of the rails. May had left us to put away the last bits of unused items and costumes, she wanted to check up on the event's hall before the party began.

" So, what costume are you going to wear for the Halloween party?" She asked.

" I'm wearing no costume, I'm going to stay in my room tonight and read a book..." I replied and continued to put the face paints back into the box. " I'm not in the mood for Halloween parties or dressing up in costumes, I just want a quiet night with no screaming children or frights or spooky ghostly happenings... "

" Don't be a stick in the mud, come and have some fun with us!" She said as she quickly turned me around to face her and held a little red riding hood costume towards me. " Put this on now or I'll be forced to dress you, you're not going to spend another night in your room alone again! Do you hear me? Stop moping about my brother, I miss him too and I'm getting on with my life without him around!"

" Okay, I'll come if it means that much to you..." I sighed. " Just let me finish packing away the costume makeup first, then I'll get changed into that costume in my room..."

" Great, you'll need this too!" She smirked and took a wicker basket from behind her back. " Don't be late, it begins at 5pm. There's been loads of Halloween games organized by May like bobbing for apples and pin the tail on the werewolf. Also there will be many treats and probably a lot of tricks will be pulled tonight, it will be so much fun!"

" It seems like May as put a lot of thought into arranging the Halloween party, I guess I could go for a few hours and then retire to my room before the party ends..." I said with a slight smile as I took the costume from Nonie's hand and held it against me. " I've actually never wore a Halloween costume before, so this will be a first for me. May I ask what costume you are planning to wear for the Halloween party? Even more, will Backup be going?"

" I'm not sure if Backup will turn up, he told me he had something to do this evening that involved him not being around people..." She replied, she rushed over to one of the rails and took a black bag from a coat-hanger. " My costume is a surprise, I asked May to design something unique for me. Something modern, yet fun at the same time..."

" I see, that sounds intriguing..." I smiled.

" I better go, I need at least 30 minutes to get changed and then do my makeup..." She said as she rushed back over to me and took some white costume makeup from the box. " I'll bring this back later, I'll see you in the event's hall in an hours time!"

I took the wicker basket from Nonie's hand, I watched her leave the room and I placed the basket down on the table top. I placed my costume inside the basket, I packed away the rest of the costume makeup and placed the box back on a shelf near a dress mannequin. I picked the basket up from the table and left the design and crafts room, I guess this party could be fun after all.

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><p>I looked at my reflection in the mirror as I put the red hood up on my cape, trust Nonie to choose me something childish. I got up from my chair at the dressing table, I brushed down the blue checked puffy dress I was wearing and walked over to my bed. I picked my wicker basket up from my bed, I left my room and quickly made my way to the event's hall. I could hear the song Flesh 'n Blood by Oingo Boingo playing loudly from the event's hall as I walked along the corridor, I stopped by the wall near the entrance of the event's hall and peeped my head around the door frame.<p>

The event's hall was decorated with orange and black paper streamers, there was also a few paper bats hanging from the ceiling. There were black balloons, flashing orange lights and bowls of sweets on every table. I walked through the doorway of the hall and walked over to one the tables as I fanned myself with my hand, it's very warm in here. I placed my basket down on the table, I took a ghost shaped chocolate lollipop from the bowl and bit its head off. I looked around the hall and watched a few of the students dancing, everyone seemed to be enjoying themselves.

" SJ, you're here at least!" I heard Nonie yell from behind me. " Come on, I want you to play some of the games with me! Everyone else is just interested in eating candy and dancing around pumpkins, but I know you're always up for games!"

I quickly turned around to face her and laughed when I saw her costume, she was right when she said something unique. She was dressed as Princess Peach from The Super Mario Bros with a twist, her pink dress was torn and it had blood stains all down the front of it. She had painted her face white with fake cuts and fake blood around her mouth, she even wore a little crown on her head.

" Wow Nonie, your costume is interesting!" I smiled and picked my basket up from the table. " I was about to get something eat though, I'm starving!"

" Please!" She pouted.

" Okay, just one game then!" I sighed.

Nonie grabbed hold of my wrist, she began to partly drag me across the hall and pushed a few of the students out of her way as she walked. I'm glad she didn't notice a few of the angry glances we were getting from the other students, she could be very rude at times. I took another bite of my chocolate ghost lollipop, I felt someone tug at the back of my cape and looked over my shoulder. I felt someone yank my lollipop from my hand, I let out a small squeal and saw a student wearing a rubber werewolf mask running away with my lollipop.

" Someone just stole my ghost lollipop!" I yelled.

" I'll get you another one later, come and bob for apples with me now!" She yelled as she pushed a boy out of her way and stopped me next to a barrel full of water. " No one seems to want to get their face paint smudged, but I on the other hand think it's the best part of Halloween! You can go first, I'll count how long it takes you to get an apple..."

I nodded at Nonie and gave her my basket to hold, this will be a challenge. I placed my hands on the rim of the barrel, I chose an apple to bob for and tucked some of my hair behind my ear. It took me a few tries to get one, but I managed to get one in the end. I took a bite of the apple and wiped some water away from my mouth with the back of my hand, apparently it took me 55 seconds to get an apple from the barrel.

" Your go Nonie, let's see if you can beat my time..." I smiled.

" I don't want to bob for apples anymore, I'm going to help Mello and Matt carve their pumpkins to put in the cemetery later..." She said as she gave me my basket back." But you win, I'll find you later!"

I watched Nonie barge through a group of dancing students, I hate when she changes her mind about stuff. I sighed to myself as I ate my apple, I looked over at an open door that led to the outer corridor of the building and decided to go outside for a while. I left the hall and wrapped my red cape around myself as I walked outside, it's cold this evening. I finished eating my apple as I walked along the corridor, I placed the apple core in my basket and stopped next to a statue of a rearing horse. I rested my hands on a low wall as I looked over it at some flowerbeds and smiled, sometimes the gardens of The Wammy House reminded me of the back garden of my Aunt's cottage. I looked up from the flowerbed at the sky and sighed as I stepped away from the wall, I better get back to the party. I put my hood up on my cape, I made a popping sound with my mouth and swayed my hips to the music coming from the event's hall.

I quietly laughed to myself, I quickly turned around to be greet by person wearing a werewolf mask. I jumped backwards as I squealed, the person covered up my mouth with their hand and laughed loudly. I frowned when I recognized the person's laugh, it was Backup. I pushed him away from me and hit him with my basket. He laughed again and removed his werewolf mask, he clearly didn't care that he just scared me half to death.

" Backup!" I yelled. " What the hell do you think you're doing?!"

" Did you just say a curse word?" He asked.

" Shut up!" I frowned as I hit him with my basket again. " It was you who stole my chocolate ghost lollipop in the event's hall, why did you do that?"

" Your anger amuses me, but I confess to the crime. I stole your chocolate ghost lollipop, I devoured the rest of it and disposed of the evidence. I plead guilty, it was a crime of hunger... " He replied with a chuckle. " Do you want play a game with me? It's the night of tricks after all, everything that happens tonight will be forgotten by tomorrow..."

" No, go away!" I frowned and pushed him away from me. " Go and play your silly little games with someone else and leave me alone, you nearly gave me a heart attack!"

" I couldn't resist, you looked so vulnerable standing all alone in the outer corridor. I'm the big bad wolf after all, I believe this is the part where you ask me about my teeth and ears..." He chuckled. " Maybe I should have brought a chainsaw or knife with me, I believe that may have more of an effect on your lifespan. Even a fright will not unfreeze it, I need to gather more ideas and continue with my experiments..."

" Just go away, I'm not your experiment..." I sighed, I took my apple core from my basket it and threw it at him. " Now scat, go and pester someone else!"

I watched Backup put his werewolf mask back on, he walked back along the corridor and disappeared back into the event's hall. I sighed to myself as I picked my apple core up from the floor, I placed it back in my basket and put my hood up on my cape. I slowly walked back along the corridor, I stopped when I heard someone clear their throat and tightened my grip around the handle of my wicker basket. I could feel the presence of someone standing behind me, I felt someone place their hand on my shoulder and I heard a male's voice say my name quietly to me. I didn't recognize the voice, but I've got one idea who the person may be.

" I said go away Backup, just leave me alone!" I yelled.

I quickly turned around, I hit him repeatedly with the basket over his head and stopped when I noticed blonde hair. I dropped my basket to the floor and covered up my mouth with both of my hands, it wasn't Backup after all. I placed my hand on the crouched boy's back as I apologized to him, I slightly bend over next to him and took a look at his face. I asked him if he was okay, but he didn't answer me. I brushed his blonde shaggy hair away from his face and froze, I must be seeing things. I cupped his cheek with my hand, I gently turned his head to face me and smiled. I was greeted with a goofy smile and wink, it was A.

" Oh my god, you're home!" I smiled.

" So is this how you greet people now?" He asked as he rubbed the back of his head and chuckled. " That wasn't the welcoming home I was hoping for from you, but I guess it's better than nothing. But let me guess, Backup as been annoying you tonight?"

I quickly wrapped my arms around him and laughed, I can't believe he's back home. I helped him up onto his feet, I gave him another hug and pulled myself away from him. I watched him glance both ways down the outer corridor, he gently took hold of my arm and led me behind the statue of the rearing horse. He let go of my arm, he leant back against the statue as he crossed his arms and smiled at me.

" So, how have you been?" He asked.

" Okay I guess, but I've been so worried about you though!" I replied and rested my hands on his crossed arms. " You wouldn't believe what me and Nonie have done over the past year to try and find you. We broke into Mr Ruvie's office and searched through all of his private documents,we could have gotten into a lot of trouble if we got caught. Just one word that you were okay would have brought some relief to the both of us, but besides that how are you?"

" It sounds like you and Nonie have become a team well I was away, but I'm fine..." He replied as he uncrossed his arms and stood up straight. " I'm sorry if I worried you both, but I told you before I left that I wouldn't be able to contact you or anyone else at The Wammy House. But I'm back now, so the worrying part is over..."

" That's easier said than done, I'll always worry about you when you're away with Watari and L. I know the cases they solve can be dangerous, but I hate that you're always away for so long..." I sighed. " But look at you, you've changed so much since the last time I saw you. I would hardly have recognized you if it wasn't for your smile, you have grown up and gotten so tall!"

" Well I've had two birthdays since I last saw you, I'm now 16 and a year away from escaping this place..." He smiled as he tiled his head and checked out my Halloween costume. " But I could say the same about you too, you're different as well! You're not a girl anymore, you've turned into little red riding hood..."

" Your jokes are still terrible as always, I've missed them..." I giggled.

" What I really meant to say was you've become a young woman, your hair as even got longer too..." He smiled and took hold of my hands as he softy kissed my cheek. " I should go and find Nonie, I've not seen her or Backup yet. You were the first person I came to find when I got back, it was hard to find you though with everyone dressed in Halloween costumes and running around like mad men. I've forgotten what this place can be like at Halloween, nothing ever changes around here..."

" I know what you mean, but I'm happy that you're back home now..." I smiled. " I'm going to get something to eat well you look for them, but if it helps Nonie is dressed as a zombie Princess Peach and Backup is wearing a rubber werewolf mask. You can't miss them, but promise me you will come and join the party later or at least visit me before lights out..."

" Thanks for the tips, but I will come and find you later..." He smiled. " We've got so much to catch up on, I've got loads to tell you and I've also got my eye on some of those toffee apples I noticed when I entered the event's hall. But I'm going to be honest about one thing, I've kind of missed the food they serve at the orphanage..."

" You never change, I will see you later!" I laughed.

I let go of A's hands and kissed him goodbye. I hurried over to my basket, I picked it up from the floor and looked over my shoulder when I heard A clear his throat. He gave me a quick wave before he walked down the other way of the outer corridor and disappeared through a side door. I hurried back along the corridor to the event's hall, I walked through the doorway of the hall and rejoined the other students at the Halloween party.


	27. Strange Days

**Hey, Nukia here!**

**This fanfiction is a side story to Beyond This Love.**

**I don't know if any of my old readers are reading my rewrites anymore, but I'm going to keep going. Sorry for the late update, I had to restart all of my chapter again because it disappeared for some reason from my laptop. One minute it was there and the next it was gone, so weird! This chapter feels so rushed now, but I wanted to update. **

**But thank you for the reviews, favorites and the alerts! Also to the unknown people who read my fanfictions, I promise it will pick up at some point! If you don't like it, then don't read it.**

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><p><strong>Chapter 27!<strong>

I groaned when I heard my alarm clock ringing from my bedside table, I opened one of my eyes and switched it off as I sighed. I sat up in my bed, I stretched my arms above my head and yawned loudly. I felt really tired this morning, the Halloween party went on longer than expected. Somehow May had talked Mr Ruvie into letting the party end at 10pm instead of 9pm, I'm not to sure how she managed to do that but she is his niece after all. I kicked my blankets away from myself, I got out of my bed and headed to the bathroom. I took a quick shower, cleaned my teeth and got changed into my favorite blue dress. I fastened my black belt to my dress as I left the bathroom, I walked over to my dressing table and sat down on my chair in front of it.

I applied some of my chapstick to my lips and quickly did the rest of my makeup. I tied my hair up into a messy bun, sprayed myself with my vanilla scented perfume and got up from my chair. I smiled to myself when I noticed A's denim jacket hanging over the back of my chair, he must have forgotten to take it with him last night. Me and A had left the Halloween party an hour early so we could have a quick catch up before lights out, he told me all about Los Angeles and the main attractions he had seen well he was there. He also told me that they couldn't find Elèanore anywhere, but it turned out that a few other students had gone missing from Watari's business contact's orphanage and the university's campus too.

I took A's jacket from the back of my chair, I quickly put it on and left my room. I got a few cheery good mornings from some students as I walked past them in the corridor, everyone seems to be in a good mood this morning. I opened the door that led to the two flights of stairs that I always used to get to the ground floor of the orphanage, I walked through the doorway and stopped at the top of the stairs when I felt a strange fluttering sensation in my chest. I took hold of the staircase's banister as I placed my hand on my chest, I watched a student pass me on the staircase and I continued to walk down the two flights of stairs. The fluttering sensation had subsided by the time I had gotten to the ground floor, I took a deep breath and crossed my arms as I walked down the corridor to the dinner hall.

I entered the dinner hall and took a wooden tray from the tray rack. I walked over to the deli counters, I took a plate of hot buttered toast from a deli counter's shelf and an apple from a fruit basket, I wasn't feeling that hungry this morning. I'm not surprised though with all of those sweet treats and hot dogs I ate last night at the Halloween party, I think most of the students will be on sugar highs for the rest of the day. I made myself some tea, I placed the teacup down on my tray and picked my tray up from the counter. I took a look around the dinner hall and spotted A sitting with four blonde-haired girls in the corner of the hall, I watched one of the girls drape her arm around his shoulders and laugh loudly as she took something from his hand. I sighed to myself as I bit at my bottom lip, I guess I will be sitting alone this morning.

" Disgusting isn't it?" I heard Nonie say from behind me. " They're like a bunch of puppies drooling all over a new chew toy, who knew that A would get this popular after being away from the orphanage for over a year. I really hate bimbos drooling all over my brother, what the hell is wrong with you girls?!"

I cringed when a few students turned around on their chairs to look at us, I hate when Nonie gets overprotective of her brother in public. I saw A push the girl away from him and cover up his face with both of his hands, I think he feels more embarrassed than I do right now. I looked at Nonie over my shoulder, she was wearing her sunglasses again and her favorite red devil hoody with blue skinny jeans.

" Good morning SJ, how are feeling?" She asked with smirk. " I think I'm sugar wasted, I've not slept all night. How about you, did you sleep last night?"

" I slept well thank you..." I replied.

" I bet you did, I saw you and my brother slip out of the side door last night an hour before the party ended..." She chuckled. " Where did you both go? You missed out on the pumpkin walk to the cemetery, it was so creepy and Backup scared the crap out of these 5 year olds with his werewolf mask. It was hilarious until one of them peed themselves, then the party was truly over..."

" We just went for a walk and hung out in my room for a while, he was telling me all about Los Angeles and its main attractions..." I replied and turned my attention back to A sitting at the table. " It sounds like a nice place to take a holiday, all those piers with arcades and ice cream stands along the beach..."

" God, you're so boring at times!" I heard Nonie say. " Do you want to eat in the corridor with me today? I don't feel like sitting in the dinner hall with those puppies drooling over my brother, I don't think I can stomach anymore of it! God he's so stupid, public displays are not allowed in The Wammy House!"

I looked at Nonie again over my shoulder, I agreed to sit with her in the corridor as long as she didn't have anymore public outbursts. I took one last look over at A, I sighed to myself and left the dinner hall with Nonie. We sat on some benches at the end of the corridor near an arched window, I picked my teacup up from my tray and took a look out of the window. I took a sip of my tea as I watched some of the younger students playing football on the grounds, I leant my shoulder against the window-frame and stared into my teacup.

" You're quiet this morning, have you lost your voice?" I heard Nonie ask. " More to the point, why are you wearing my brother's jacket? Did you steal it? Please say you stole it, it would break that innocent streak of yours which would amuse me!"

" I didn't steal his jacket, he left it in my room last night..." I replied as I looked up from my teacup at her. " I thought I would wear it so I didn't have to carry it around with me, also it's cold this morning and I couldn't be bothered to find my own jacket. But I will make sure he get's it back today, that's when he's finished talking with those girls..."

" I guess that makes sense, it makes more sense than those girls drooling all over my brother. What does he see in them besides short skirts and high-heels?" She asked, she picked a gingerbread man up from her tray and snapped its head off. " I hate that he chooses to waste his precious time on those idiotic girls instead of his own family, I would even prefer if he spent more time with someone like you than them! He makes my blood boil, why does he have to be so thoughtless?!"

" I don't know, maybe he likes trampy girls now..." I replied and placed my teacup down on my tray. " He as been away for over a year after all, people can change sometimes when they have been gone for a long period of time..."

" What male doesn't like trampy girls?" She asked. " They're all the same, they think they can control you and mold you into something that you're not! I'm sick of them all, they'll point out all of our faults and destroy our hearts without a second thought!"

" Are you okay?" I asked.

" Do I look okay?!" She asked, she dropped her broken gingerbread man on her tray and got up from the bench. " I'm sick of this place, everything about it is poisonous! He's going to leave us soon and I don't know how I'm going to cope without him around, he's my rock!"

" Who is going to leave us?" I asked.

" It doesn't matter, you wouldn't understand if I told you anyway!" She frowned and picked her tray up from the bench. " I think I need to go and have it out with him, I will not stand being treated like this anymore!"

" Nonie, who are talking about?" I asked.

" None of your business!" She yelled.

I watched Nonie scream with anger as she threw her tray against the corridor's wall, she wiped a few tears away from her cheek and then ran down the corridor. I picked my tray up from the bench when I heard Mr Ruvie yelling and quickly made my way back to the dinner hall. I walked through the doorway of the dinner hall and bit at my bottom lip as I looked over at A, I think I better tell him about Nonie. I slowly walked over to the table he was sitting at with the four blonde-haired girls, I stopped next to the table and placed my tray down on it. He looked up at me from some photographs he was holding in his hand and gave me a smile as he pulled his chair away from the table.

" Hey there SJ, pull up a seat!" He smiled.

" Maybe later, but may I have a private word with you for a moment please?" I asked. " It's important, it won't take long..."

" Sure..." He replied.

I watched A get up from his chair, he placed the photographs down on the table and walked with me over to one of the deli counters. I took an apple from the fruit basket, I leant back against the counter and held the apple towards him. He shook his head at me and grabbed a chocolate chip muffin from a tray, I should have known he would have chosen the unhealthy opinion.

" So what's up?" He asked.

" It's about Nonie, she just had an extreme freak out in the corridor not long ago..." I replied. " I know she can lose her temper at times, but I've never seen her act this way before. She was ranting about you at first, she said she didn't understand why you were wasting your precious time with those girls instead of spending your time with your family. I'm worried about her, I also think she maybe in trouble with Mr Ruvie now..."

" Really?" He asked." What as she done to Roger?"

" She's done nothing directly to him, but I heard him shouting not long after she threw her tray of food against the corridor wall..." I replied. " I think you need to go and talk to her, I think something or someone is bothering her..."

" I see, she's most probably getting jealous again over silly little things..." He sighed, he took a bite of his chocolate chip muffin and spoke to me with his mouth full. " You know how childish she can be at times, but I will go and speak to her just to see if she as any private issues she would like to discuss with me. But I see what you mean about her acting oddly, I mean what was with that outburst she had not long ago in the dinner hall? I didn't know where to look, she needs to learn to control her temper or stick some duct tape over her mouth..."

" I know, it didn't help much with those girls drooling all over you..." I said quietly and placed the apple back into the fruit basket as I sighed. " I think that provoked her even more, she thinks you're wasting your time with girls like that and wants you to waste some of your time with someone like me. That's if you want to be with someone like me anymore, you seemed pretty cosy with that blonde-haired girl earlier..."

" SJ, you know very well how I feel about you..." He said quietly with smiled. " I wouldn't trade you in for a blonde, I'm more of a brunette lover and I'll prove that to you on your birthday. But for now I better go and find Nonie before she does something reckless, I don't want her getting put in isolation like Backup does sometimes. I've only been put into isolation once, but the once was enough for me..."

" Okay..." I nodded.

I followed him back over to the table where the girls were sitting, he picked his bag up from the floor and hung it over his shoulder. I watched him take some photographs from one of the girls, he said goodbye to them and walked past me. I picked my tray up from the table, I got a cruel glare from one of the blonde-haired girls sitting at the table and quickly followed after A. He stopped me next to a table, he took my tray from my hands and placed it down on the table. He pulled a chair away from the table, he gently took hold of my arm and sat me down on the chair.

" I want you to stay here and eat your breakfast, it's probably safer if you did stay here to be honest..." He said with a smile as he quickly tuck some of my hair behind my ear and rested his hand on my shoulder. " I don't want Nonie to hurt you, you know what she can like when she gets angry. But I'll see you in Art class, so just wish me luck for now..."

" Okay, I wish you luck..." I smiled, I took A's denim jacket off and held it towards him. " You should take this with you, it's chilly this morning and I wouldn't want you to catch anything nasty to ruin your day. Also Nonie questioned why I was wearing your jacket, so it's best if you take it with you..."

" Nah, you can wear it..." He said with a slight smirk. " It looks better on you anyway, also you're only wearing a dress. It would be ungentlemanly of me to take a jacket from a lady when it's cold outside, I learned that one of Watari. I bet he was stud muffin back in his day, your Aunt probably didn't stand a chance when he was around with his good manners and other disturbing grown up things. I think I should go now before I vomit, but I'll see you in Art class..."

" Okay, I'll give you your jacket back later then..." I laughed.

I watched him leave the dinner hall, I put his denim jacket back on and turned my attention to my breakfast. I picked a slice of my toast up from the plate, I took a small bite out of it and laughed quietly to myself. A always made me laugh when he talked about Watari and my Aunt's past friendship, he always reckoned that they had a secret love affair when they were younger. It would be a nice notion to think that they felt some kind of happiness or love in their life's at one point, but I know it would be impossible with the life's they both led.

I ate the rest of my breakfast, I carried my tray over to the cleaner's tray rack and placed it with some other trays. I brushed some toast crumbs away from my dress as I walked to the entrance of the dinner hall, I stop dead when I felt the same fluttering sensation in my chest again that I felt this morning on the stairs and placed my hand on my chest. I shook my head slightly when my eyesight began to blur, I leaned on the nearest chair to me as I began to feel unsteady on my feet. I took a few sharp breaths as I fell onto my knees, I don't feel to good I thought to myself before everything went dark.


	28. Ignore Him

**Hey, Nukia here!**

**This fanfiction is a side story to Beyond This Love.**

**I don't know if any of my old readers are reading my rewrites anymore, but I'm going to keep going. Sorry for the late update, I've been ill and busy. I may write another part to this chapter, then move on to some wrapping up chapters to this fanfiction. **

**But thank you for the reviews, favorites and the alerts! Also to the unknown people who read my fanfictions, I promise it will pick up at some point! If you don't like it, then don't read it.**

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter 28!<strong>

I slowly opened my eyes when I heard a straight beeping sound, I felt someone take hold of my hand and gently pat it as I heard a female's voice saying my name to me. I turned my head slightly and saw a blur outline of a woman. I rubbed at my eyes and sniffled as I sat up, where am I? I felt something wrap around my right arm, I quickly looked at my arm and saw a blood pressure cuff. I looked up from the cuff at a dark-haired woman wearing a dark blue nurse's dress, she gave me a kind smile and began to pump up the blood pressure cuff around my arm.

" Hello Elizabeth, do you remember me?" She asked.

" Yes I do, you are nurse Clark..." I replied as I watched the cuff around my arm deflate. " What is going on? Why are you taking my blood pressure?"

" That's correct, it seems that you're not suffering from short-term memory lose this time sweetheart which is a good thing. You fainted in the dinner hall this morning, you've been out cold for over half an hour which is quite a long time for someone who as suffered from a fainting spell..." She replied with a smile. " But I want you to lie back down and take it easy for now, it seems that you're suffering from low blood pressure. How much fluid would you say you drink in a day?"

" I don't know, probably the same amount as every other student in The Wammy House..." I replied.

" I see, how about irregular palpitations or stress or anxiety?" She asked. " Sometimes worrying about things can make your blood pressure plummet, have you been struggling in any of your lessons?"

" No, my lessons have been going well lately which surprises me. But I did have a strange fluttering sensation in chest earlier this morning, do you think it as anything to do with my lungs?" I asked as I watched her remove the blood pressure cuff from my arm. " My family have a history of lung disease, my mother died from Pneumonia and my grandmother died from respiratory failure..."

" I don't think it lung related, but I will take some bloods and keep you under my care for the next hour. I'll go and fetch you a glass of water to bring your blood pressure up as well, I'll have to ring Royal Hampshire County Hospital to see if I can get a copy of your families records or speak to Watari about them..." She replied. " But for now I want you to rest and think of something nice to occupy your thoughts for a while. I'll just be a moment well I gather my blood collection tubes and butterfly needles, I'll see if I can find you some chocolate biscuits at my nurse's station for little treat after I've taken your bloods..."

" What about my lessons?" I asked.

" You don't have to worry about your lessons at this very moment, I'm sure you'll be able to join your class mates at some point today..." She replied and drew back the blue curtains of curtain track of the cubicle. " I won't be long, if you need anything well I'm away or feel sick then you can press the nurse button which is hanging on the headboard of the bed..."

" Okay..." I nodded.

I watched nurse Clark leave the cubicle, I lay back on the bed and sighed as I looked up at the ceiling. I hate the hospital wing of The Wammy House, it's always quiet and empty in this part of the orphanage. It wasn't long until nurse Clark return with a glass of water and a small metal tray with her blood kit on it, she placed the glass of water down on the hospital over-bed table and laid out her blood kit. She cleaned the angular bend of my right arm with an antiseptic wipe, she gently needled my arm with a pink butterfly needle and took some of my blood in the collection tubes. She stuck a little plaster on my arm and gave me a few vitamin tablets to take with my water, she told me that she would be back in a while after she had sorted out my bloods to take my blood pressure again.

I sat back up in the hospital bed, I popped the vitamin tablets into my mouth and picked my glass of water up from the over-bed table. I took a sip of my water and swallowed the vitamin tablets, I hope I'm not kept waiting for to long. I placed my glass of water back down on the over-bed table, I curled up onto my side on the bed and tucked my hands under my chin. I listened to a telephone ringing from the nurse's station, I brew my fringe away from my eyes and noticed someone watching me from under the bed in the next cubicle. I slightly sat up in the bed and rolled my eyes, why is Backup here? He gave me a smirk as he half pulled himself from underneath the bed, he licked his top lip and put his arms behind his head.

" What do you?" I asked.

" Nothing in particular, I came to check on you..." He replied as he stared up at the ceiling. " Very interesting, it seems that your lifespan had a minimal drop with your sudden fainting incident in the dinner hall. I wonder if this is a key to unlocking your lifespan's secrets, I believe I should be watching you more closely from now on..."

" I'm not in the mood for silly lifespan talks, please will you go away..." I sighed.

" Do you know how fainting is caused?" He asked. " It's true medical name is syncope, it's caused by decreased blood flow to the brain. Many different conditions can cause fainting spells, these include heart problems such as irregular heart beats, seizures, panic or anxiety attacks, low blood sugar... I could go on, but medical facts sometimes bore me when there is not a demonstration to the examples..."

" I believe your medical facts, but may I ask how long you've been hiding underneath that bed?" I asked." Have you been listening in on mine and nurse Clark's conversation?"

" No, I was actually allowed to stay here with you until Watari comes to see you..." He replied. " You should be grateful I didn't walk away and leave you on the dinner hall's floor, but then I thought of my Alternative. He would have help you if he was there, I volunteered to carry you to the hospital wing..."

" Really?" I asked.

" Yes, why I would I lie about something like that?" He asked. " I have come to think of you as my friend just like Nonie and Alternative have over the past few years, would you find that hard to believe?"

" Yes I would find that very hard to believe, all you ever do is frighten me and say weird things to me about my lifespan. I'm positive that you're making up half the stuff you say to me at times, you're a very confusing person..." I answered as I sat up straight and swung my legs over the side of the bed. " And then you call me your experiment, do you know how that makes me feel?"

" No, why don't you enlighten me with your emotions..." He smirked.

" It frightens me, I'm scared that you're planning to do something to me..." I said with a sigh as I looked up from him on the floor and looked over at the nurse's station. " I've spoken to A about it, he told me to ignore everything you say. But it still preys on my mind every time I see you, what do you want from me?"

" I've not decided yet what your purpose will be to me, but I have a gut feeling that you and me have a destiny together..." He replied as he pulled himself from underneath the bed and got up from the floor. " If you fear that I'm planning to smother you in your sleep then you are truly wrong, I would never take anyone's life without a reason. I've been brought up to believe that the wicked will play for their crimes against justice, but I on the other hand do not believe in such a preposterous idea. I think the innocent have more to hide than the guilty, no one can go through life without doing at least one sinful thing..."

" You're making no sense as always, will you please go away..." I sighed. " You're giving me a headache, I'm meant to be resting you know..."

" As you wish, but I can prove to you that everything I say is the truth..." He said. " Someone we both know as not got much time left in this world, this individual will be leaving us very soon. You will know who I am talking about the minute you hear their name, then you will come to me and it will all be clear..."

" Who is leaving us?" I asked. " Nonie said the exact same thing to me this morning, but she said he before she ran away crying. But that he could be anyone, we know a lot of male students in The Wammy House. It could even be someone Nonie knows, I think she maybe seeing someone in secret... "

" Now that would be telling, I want it to be a surprise..." He replied.

I glanced over at the nurse's station when I heard a chair being pulled away from the desk, I turned my full attention back to Backup and watched him put his hands in his jean pockets. He put his finger tip to his lips as nurse Clark walked back into the cubicle, she gave Backup a sachet of strawberry jam and picked a clipboard up from the over-bed table. She hung it on the metal headboard of the bed, she took the blood pressure cuff from the cabinet next to the bed and asked me to hold my right arm out for her.

" Mr Wammy will be visiting you soon, so I'm afraid that your little friend will have to go back to his lessons now..." She smiled as she wrapped the cuff around my arm. " You're very lucky to have a friend like him, he wouldn't leave your side until I reassured him that you were perfectly fine. He's sure a good student, he even helped me move some blankets earlier..."

I raised one of my eyebrow as I looked over at Backup, he gave me a smirk and put his strawberry jam sachet in his jean pocket. Nurse Clark began to pump up the blood pressure cuff on my arm, she took my temperature with an ear thermometer and gave me a small packet of chocolate biscuits. I watched him removed his finger tip from his lips, he said goodbye to nurse Clark and left the cubicle. I watched him walking down the hospital wing's aisle, he stopped at the wooden double doors of the wing and looked at me over his shoulder. I quickly looked away from his glaze and tucked some of my hair behind my ear as I gave nurse Clark a smile. I heard the doors of the hospital wing close as I nurse Clark removed the cuff from my arm. I know for a fact that he's got nurse Clark fooled and everyone else in the orphanage, he really is not a good student as she put it.

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><p>I closed my room's door behind me, I smiled at a student as she walked past me in the corridor and then quickly removed my new shoes with a little heel on them. I hurried down the corridor bare foot and stopped at a door. I glanced both ways down the corridor, I quick opened the door and hurried through it. I closed the door behind me and put my shoes back on, I hope no one saw me. Today is my 16th birthday, it's also the night that Watari throws the Bonfire party for all the students. But I'm not joining the Bonfire party just yet, I'm going to meet A in the attic. He had passed me a letter in class asking me to meet him in the attic at 4:30pm, he had written that he had planned to make me evening tea. It made me laugh slightly, the last time he made me tea it tasted like dishwater. I quickly walked up the three flights of stairs to the very top floor of The Wammy House, I met A by the door of the attic and hurried through the doorway. I watched him close the door behind, he locked it with a key and put the key in his denim jacket's pocket<p>

" Why are locking the door?" I asked.

" I don't want anyone to disturb us, this is our little secret get away after all..." He smiled and took hold of my hand. " Be careful on the stairs well you're wearing those shoes, I don't want you to drip or fall down them..."

" Okay..." I nodded.

We walked up the staircase to the attic, he let go of my hand when we got to the top and walked over to a table. I took a look around the attic to see a few lit candles on a plate near some folded up blankets on the floor, I walked over to the blankets and picked the plate of candles up from the floor. I placed the plate down on a wooden crate, I looked over my shoulder at A and watched him carrying a tray full of goodies over towards me. He placed the tray down on the window seat, he quickly unfolded the blankets and laid them out on the floor. I took a few cushions from the window seat, I placed them down on the blankets and cupped my hands together as I watched him pick the tray back up from the window seat.

" Take a seat, the blankets are clean..." He said as he placed the tray down on the blankets and got onto his knees. " I got them from the laundry room a few hours ago, so you won't get your dress dirty and they smell pretty good too. I've also got about four fleeces as well in case you get cold, this evening is going to be about comfort and enjoyment. Then we'll head down to the Bonfire party later for some more snacks, I've got everything planned out for your birthday treat..."

" You sound very organized, hopefully your tea making skills have improved since you last made me tea..." I smiled.

" That was kind of harsh, you're like a tea critic sometimes..." He sighed. " I've been practicing though, the amount of tea I made for Watari when I was in Los Angeles should have improved my tea making skills by now. So take a seat and let's see if I can impress you, also I'm starving for biscuits!"

" I'm sorry, I didn't mean it to come out like that..." I said as I sat down on the blankets and took a chocolate biscuit from the tray." But you may proceed, I'm looking forward to trying your tea now since you've had a lot of practice..."

" You just sounded like your Aunt Thora then, that was creepy..." He chuckled.

" I'm sorry, I won't say it ever again..." I laughed.

I took a bite of my chocolate biscuit as A picked the teapot up from the tray, he carefully poured the tea into two white china teacups. He placed the teapot back down on the tray, he added milk and sugar to the teacups as chewed at his bottom lip. He took off his denim jacket and draped it over a pillow, he then picked a teacup up from the tray and held it towards me.

" Do you have a saucer?" I asked.

" I didn't bring any with me, is there a problem without a saucer?" He asked.

" Not at all, it's just not proper tea without a saucer..." I replied and took the teacup from his hand. " The purpose of the saucer is to stop spillage and somewhere to place your teaspoon or biscuit, but it doesn't matter. I'm grateful that you planned evening tea for me, it's a very thoughtful idea..."

" Do you want me to go and grab you saucer from the kitchen?" He asked. " I'll be quick, I want this to be perfect and memorable for you. It's your 16th birthday after all, I missed your birthday last year and I want to make it up to you..."

" It's fine, really it's okay..." I smiled.

" Good, I didn't fancy walking all the way down to the kitchen anyway..." He chuckled.

" You're lazy, god help you when you have to do things for yourself..." I smiled, I brew on my tea and took a sip of it. " Wow, it doesn't taste like dishwater this time. I mean it's good! I'm so sorry, I think I should keep my mouth shut today..."

" It's alright, my tea did use to taste like dishwater..." He chuckled.

I took another sip of my tea, he really had improved with his tea making. I dipped my last piece of biscuit into my tea and popped it into my mouth. I gave A smile as he moved the tray, he placed it next to some folded up fleeces and lay down on the blanket. He put his hands behind his head, I drank the rest of my tea and placed my teacup on the window seat. I removed my shoes and placed them next to a pillow, I hope my shoes don't smell.

" So, how is your blood pressure doing now?" He asked.

" It's gone back to normal now, but I've got to visit nurse Clark once a day just to check on it..." I replied. " Did you know Backup carried me to the hospital wing? Apparently he wouldn't leave my side until he was reassured that I was okay, he even got called a good student by nurse Clark..."

" Yeah I knew that already about Backup, but a good student? Nurse Clark must need her head examined after saying that about B or just a good pair of glasses, he's not a model student and I doubt he's even got a good bone in his body these days..." He replied. " I've known Backup since I was 8 years old, the amount of bad things that kid as done to others isn't even amusing in my eyes. But I've learned to live with it and I would consider him to be one of my best friends even if I don't trust him, but there is something about him at times which I can't put my finger on that makes me feel uncomfortable around him..."

" I know that feeling, he said some peculiar things to me when I was in the hospital wing..." I sighed.

" What did he say to you?" He asked.

" He told me that my lifespan had a minimal drop, I'm not really sure what he meant by that and he also told me someone I know is going to leave us..." I replied. " Nonie said the exact same thing to me in the corridor a few days ago, do you know anyone who is planning to leave The Wammy House?"

" Well there is one person who as been talking about leaving in the last few days, but I can't really say who the person is until they have been given permission by Watari..." He replied. " But I've told you before to just ignore what Backup as to say, he's lunatic with sociopathic tendencies after all. But for now I've got a little surprise for you, something to bring a smile to your face..."

I watched him take a small piece of folded up paper from his jacket pocket, he held it towards me and beckoned me to take it. I took the paper from his hand, I opened it up as I curled my legs underneath myself and raised both of my eyebrows. There was just three words written down on the paper, I looked up at A from the paper and tilted my head as I bit at my bottom lip.

" Who is Aiden Michael Tayler?" I asked

" Aiden is me, I am Aiden..." He replied with a smile. " I thought that it was about time I told you my name since I know your real name, but you've got to swear that you'll keep it to yourself. No one is meant to know my full name in the orphanage, it's meant to be forgotten. So I suggest you burn that piece of paper when you've memorized it, have you got that? "

" I won't tell anyone, I swear..." I replied as I lay down next to him and folded the piece of paper back up. " I like your name though, it's nice. But I will keep calling you A even if I know your true name, I'll call you Aiden sometimes when we're alone together. That's if I am allowed to use your real name, can I call you by your real name when we're alone?"

" I guess so, but you'll have to whisper it to me each time you want to use my real name..." He replied. " Aiden and Elizabeth kind of as a nice ring to it, don't you think?"

" Yes I guess it does go together, but I'm not whispering your name to you..." I replied with a giggle and rolled over onto my side. " We should get going in a while, the Bonfire party will be starting soon. I promised Rose I would help out in the food tent this year, apparently last year there wasn't enough staff to serve all the students. So half of the food ended up getting mixed up with other foods, it was a complete mess so I was told..."

" Alright, but can we stay here for a little bit longer first?" He asked.

" Okay, just for another 10 minutes and then we have to go..." I replied.

I smiled at him as I brushed some of his fringe away from his blue eyes, he leant towards me and softly kissed my lips. I closed my eyes as I slowly ran my hand down his arm, I felt him place his hand on my hip and pull me closer towards him. I rested my hands on his chest as I opened my eyes, he kissed the tip of my nose and smiled at me.

" Do you want to join the party yet or would you rather stay here with me and we could have our own little private party?" He asked with a smirk. " I don't think anyone would notice if we didn't show up, that's if you want to go and watch the fireworks. I don't mind either way as long as I'm with you, I really do treasure our time together. But today is your day, so it's your decision..."

" I like the idea of staying here, it's much warmer in the attic than outside..." I replied and rested my head on a pillow. " You have made it all cosy with candles, chocolate biscuits and blankets, it would be a shame to waste all of your effort. But I promised that I would help Rose, I can't go back on my promise. Also I want to eat something savoury instead of sweet, maybe we could go to the Bonfire party and then come back to the attic later..."

" We could do that, but it will be lights out by then. You know what Roger is like when he his prowling the corridors at night, he doesn't retire to his room until after 11pm..." He sighed as he sat up on the blanket. " We'll think of something, we could come back tomorrow and spend a few hours here after the last lesson of the day..."

" Or we could come back here after lights out, you told me about the route Mr Ruvie takes around the orphanage each night. We could easily sneak here without him knowing, we could stay here for the night! " I smiled and got up from the blanket. " Yes that sounds like so much fun, I want to camp out in the attic with you for the night! No one would know, but would Backup question where you were going for the night? Maybe it's not a good idea after all, I know there is a survival camping trip being planned for the students this month on the orphanage's grounds. But camping in the attic, I really do like the sound of that..."

" Elizabeth you little rule breaker, I didn't know you had it in you..." He chuckled.

" Please say yes, you did say today is my day after all..." I said as I knelt behind A and wrapped my arms around his shoulders. " Come on, it will be fun! Nonie always calls me a stick in the mud, I want to prove her wrong!"

" Fine, I'll think of something before the Bonfire party ends..." He sighed.

" Thank you, tonight will be so much fun!" I smiled.


	29. What Is Going On?

**Hey, Nukia here!**

**This fanfiction is a side story to Beyond This Love.**

**I don't know if any of my old readers are reading my rewrites anymore, but I'm going to keep going. Just going to say that my updates will be slowing down for the next month, I'm going to be doing some charity work but I will try to update as best as I can. But I'm going to say there will be another cliffhanger, this chapter will be split into 3 parts as well and it's pretty short.**

**But thank you for the reviews, favorites and the alerts! Also to the unknown people who read my fanfictions, I promise it will pick up at some point! If you don't like it, then don't read it.**

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><p><strong>Chapter 29!<strong>

I yawned as I rolled onto my stomach, I opened one of my eyes as I peeped from my pillow at A lying next to me. He was still fast asleep, we had managed to sneak to the attic last night without being seen by Mr Ruvie. We had waited until 11pm and met in the stairwell that led to the top floor of The Wammy House, it was pretty easy after that to get to the attic. I groaned as I got onto my knees and stretched my arms above my head, I feel so tired this morning. We mustn't have gone to sleep until 1am, we had spent most of the night playing silly thumb wrestling games and chatting about the most random things. But last night was fun, it was nice being able to spend the night with him and be like any other normal couple even if we were still classed as children in the eyes of the law. I looked over at my alarm clock on the wooden crate, it wasn't even 4am yet and the attic was dimly lit by a few candles on the crate. I glanced around the attic and jumped slightly when I heard a strange creaking sound coming from the other side of the room, please don't be anything creepy.

I quickly looked at A when I heard him muttering something in his sleep, he must be having a dream. I giggled quietly to myself when I heard him say something about bananas in his sleep, I quietly crawled over to him and gently brushed some of his fringe away from his eyes as I kissed his cheek. He stirred in his sleep, I kissed him again on his cheek and then gently shook him by his arm as I told him to wake up.

" Please wake up Aiden, I think there is something in the attic with us..." I whispered.

" Don't be silly, it's probably the building creaking because it's old or your imagination is in overdrive because it's dark... " He sleepy said as he rolled over onto his side and pulled his blanket over his head. " So go back to sleep, it's not time to get up yet..."

" But I can't sleep now after hearing that creaking sound, please wake up for just a little while..." I whispered. " I'll do anything you want, I'll even let you win when we next thumb wrestle. I'll even show you how to play checkers or even the card game go fish, then you can beat me at the games we play..."

" Alright, just for 5 minutes and then I'm going back to sleep..." He sighed.

I grabbed my blankets from where I had been sleeping, I curled up next to him and snuggled my face into his back. I felt him roll over to face me, he draped his arm over me and kissed the top of my head. I snuggled my face into his chest and smiled to myself as I listened to him breathing. I shivered when I felt my blankets being pulled away from my feet, I quickly sat up and looked around the room. I couldn't see anything or anyone, sometimes I believe that the orphanage is haunted.

" What's wrong now?" I heard A ask with a hint of annoyance in his voice. " Have you got ants in your pants or something? With the amount of jumping and fidgeting you do in your sleep wouldn't surprise me if I was right about the ants, just come back to bed..."

" It's nothing, I think my imagination is in overdrive..." I replied and pulled my knees to my chest as I looked at him over my shoulder. " I swear someone just pulled my blankets away from my feet, I think I'm losing my mind right now. Does it seem colder in here to you or is it just me?"

" We're in the attic and it's November, it's going to be cold up here..." He replied. " There is no way anyone else can get into the attic, there is only one way in and two ways out, the second way out being the window. Why don't you come back here and snuggle with me, I'll keep you safe until the morning. But for the rest of the day you're on your own, I've got three exams in the afternoon so I need some sleep..."

" Okay, but I want pillow to place near my feet just to be on the safe side..." I said quietly as I looked around the room. " I don't fancy being pulled from underneath my blankets by some unknown creature or thing, I need to stop talking and thinking now..."

" You're kind of scaring me right now, come back to bed before I can't sleep..." He sighed.

I grabbed a pillow from behind me, I placed it by my feet and lay back down next to him again. I rolled over onto my side, I softly kissed A's lips and cupped the side of his face as he wrapped his arms around me. This is the first time I've ever been close to him like this since we first became companions, it was nice having someone to snuggle with at night. I kissed him again and removed my hand from his face, this is nice.

" Now get some sleep, it will be morning before you know it..." He smiled." There is nothing in this room that can hurt you, I won't ever let anything hurt you as long as I'm around. You have my word, but you may have to protect me from clowns though..."

" Why is that?" I asked.

" They're like my kryptonite, I've got a clown childhood trauma..." He replied and kissed my cheek. " I'll tell you about it later, but for now let's get some sleep..."

" Okay, good night..." I whispered.

" Good night and remember to not let the bed bugs bite, unless I'm the bed bug then it's perfectly fine..." He chuckled.

" Silly Aiden, go to sleep!" I smiled.

I kissed him again and curled up next to him as I yawned. I pulled my blankets over my shoulder as I snuggled my face into my pillow, I felt A place his hand on my hip as I closed my eyes. I peeped from my pillow at him and gave him a smile before he closed his eyes, I could spend the rest of my life like this with him by my side.

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><p>I groaned when I heard my alarm clock ringing, I got up from the blankets and looked at A snoring his head off under a blanket next to me. I rolled my eyes and switched my alarm clock off, I better wake him up I thought to myself as I took a pillow from the blankets. I held the pillow above my head and smirked slightly as I listened to him snoring.<p>

" It's your wake up call!" I laughed as I hit him with the pillow. " Come on sleepy head, it's 6am and we need to get to our rooms before anyone notices that we're gone! Unless you're me, then it doesn't matter because I don't have a roommate!"

I watch A stir from underneath his blankets, I hit him again with the pillow and squeal when he lunged at me. I fell backwards onto the blankets with a thud, he pinned me down on the blankets and blew his fringe away from his eyes as he frowned. Maybe it wasn't a good idea to hit him with a pillow after all, he doesn't look to amused with my waking up method. I watched his face soften as he realized it was me, he let go of my wrists and got up from the blankets.

" I'm sorry, I thought you were Backup for a moment..." He sighed and ran his fingers through his messy hair as he looked down at me. " Are you alright? Hopefully I didn't hurt you, I didn't mean to lunge at you like that..."

" It's okay, but now I'm questioning why Backup would be in your bed first thing in the morning..." I smiled. " Are you keeping secrets from me?"

" You're funny, remind me to get you a joke book later from the library..." He chucked, he held his hand towards me and gave me a smile. " Let me help you, are you sure I didn't hurt you?"

" I'm positive, but I may have hurt my elbow..." I replied.

I took hold of A's hands, he helped me up from the blankets and pulled me into a hug. I snuggled my face into his chest as I wrapped my arms around him, I felt him pull me away from him and kiss my cheek. He let go of my arms, he sat down on the window seat and took a chocolate biscuit from a plate on the tray he served tea to me on yesterday. I walked over to my bag hanging on the back of chair and unzipped it. I took my new black dress from my bag that Rose had brought for my birthday, I turned around to face A and held the dress up in front of me. I looked up from my dress at him and saw him eating his chocolate biscuit as he stared out of the window. I cleared my throat and watched him turn around to face me on the window seat with part of his chocolate biscuit hanging from his mouth, he's such a messy eater sometimes.

" What do you think?" I asked.

" Yeah it's nice..." He replied as he took his biscuit from his mouth. " It's kind of to classy for The Wammy House though, it looks like a dress you would wear to a party or maybe a funeral. But I guess you were raised to be a lady by your Aunt, she dressed quite elegant if I remember rightly..."

" Rose brought it for me for my birthday, I like it..." I smiled.

" Good, you're going to be the only one wearing it after all..." He said and popped the rest of his biscuit into his mouth. " We better get dressed now, I know some students leave their room at 7am on the dot without fail..."

" Okay, is there anywhere for me to get changed in private in the attic?" I asked.

" Nope, you'll have to get changed in the open..." He replied.

" I see, where are you planning to get changed?" I asked as I unzipped the back of my new dress. " It's inappropriate for the both of us to get changed in front of each other, my Aunt Thora would be spinning in her grave at the very thought!"

" I'm already dressed, I slept in my clothes last night..." He replied. " But you can get changed if you like, I don't mind that at all..."

I crossed my arms as I stared at him, he just sat there with a blank expression on his face. He took the last chocolate biscuit from the plate on the tray, he turned his attention back to me and took a big bite out of it. He raised one of his eyebrow at me as he chewed his biscuit slowly, I cleared my throat and placed my hands on my hips with a serious expression on my face.

" What? What have done?" He asked. " Did you want the last biscuit? You can have the rest of it, I don't mind sharing my food with you..."

" Would you mind looking away please, I need to get changed into my clothes..." I replied. " This is not a peep show after all, I know we have been together for a year now but it doesn't entitled you to seeing me remove my clothes. Our relationship is not at that stage just yet, now if you wouldn't mind reverting your gaze away from me please!"

" Oh I'm sorry, I forgot!" He chuckled, he put his hood up on his hoody and let his fringe cover his eyes as he turned around to face the window. " I'm not looking, I swear!"

I let out a giggle as I slightly shook my head at him, I removed my nightwear and quickly put my black dress on. I scooped my hair over my right shoulder and whined slight as I struggled with the zip on the back of my dress. I looked over my shoulder at A and sighed, he was stilling facing the window.

" Aiden, would you please help me zip up my dress?" I asked.

" But I'm not meant to be looking at you, I'm being a gentlemen..." He replied.

" Please, I'm kind of nearly dressed now..." I sighed.

" Fine, but just this once!" He said as he turned himself around to face. " If it happens again then you're on your own, but I warn you now. I'm terrible with zips, they're all fiddly and small..."

" Well call this your practice then, but hurry up I'm getting a chill over here!" I giggled and looked over at an old wooden bookcase on the other side of the attic. " I need to have a wash before I go down for breakfast as well, would you like to stay in my room tonight?"

" You're inviting me to stay in your room for the night?" He asked.

" Yes, I want to spend more time with you..." I replied.

" Alright, but tonight is not good for me. Watari and my mentor have decided to give me a surprise study night, so I won't be around much tomorrow either..." He said. " But any other day after that I'll be free, but not on Wednesday though because that's case solving night..."

" What's case solving night?" I asked.

" It's nothing important, let's get you zipped up before catch a chill..." He replied.

" Okay..." I nodded.

I bit at my bottom lip as I heard A get up from the window seat, I listened to his footsteps as he walked over to me. I felt him zip the back of my dress up, he then told me he was going to unlock the attic door for me. I quickly packed away my items I brought with me, I put my shoes on and hung my bag over my shoulder. I carefully walked down the staircase of the attic, I stopped at the bottom of the stairs and watched A open the door for me.

" Will I see you at breakfast?" I asked.

" Yeah, you count of it..." He replied with a smile. " You better get going, I'll see you in a few hours. I need to tidy up the attic first and make sure everything is placed back where it belongs. But remember to me careful walking back to your room, also I'd remove those heals in case you have to run..."

" Why will I have to run?" I asked." Everyone is still asleep at this hour, I'll have no need to run..."

" Yeah I kind of forgot to mention that Roger begins his morning rounds at 6:35am, so I'd hurry if I was you..." He replied. " I should have told you that before you set your alarm clock last night, you've got about 20 minutes to get to your room unnoticed..."

" What are you like?" I asked with a smile and quickly kissed his lips. " I'll see you at breakfast, don't be late or I'll come and find you!"

" Well in that in case I'm going to be late then on purpose, I'll see you later..." He chuckled.

" Goodbye..." I smiled.

I quickly kissed him again before I left the attic's staircase, I heard the attic's door close as I hurried along the corridor. I stopped at the door that led down to my room's floor, I opened it wide and took off my shoes. I glanced both ways down the corridor, I walked through the doorway of the door and quietly closed the door behind me.

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><p>I jumped up in my bed when I heard someone banging on my room's door, I quickly scrambled out of my bed and rushed over to the door. I unlocked the door and opened it wide. I saw Nonie standing outside of my room's door in the corridor, she had tears running down her cheeks and red stains on the legs of her pajama bottoms. She let out a loud sob as she quickly wrapped her arms around me, I stumbled backwards slightly with her and wrapped my arms around her. I listened to her sobbing as I tried my best to comfort her, I wonder what's happened? I gently pulled her away from me, I tucked some of her long blonde hair behind her right ear and rested my hands on her arms as I soothed her.I led her over to my dressing table, I sat her down on my chair next to my dressing table and took a box of tissues from a draw.<p>

" Nonie, what's wrong?" I softly asked as I pulled a tissue from my tissues box. " As someone hurt you? Would you like me to get you a teacher or your brother for you?"

" He's gone!" She sobbed, she quickly got up from the dressing table's chair and wrapped her arms back around me. " He's gone, he's left us!"

" Who as gone?" I asked. " Nonie please answer me, what's happened?"

I repeatedly asked her the same question and she refused to answer me. I wrapped my arms back around her and noticed Backup partly peeping his head around the door frame, maybe he knows what's happened to Nonie or maybe he's the one who as done something to her. He wasn't wearing his coloured contact lenses which was odd, he normally wore them when he wasn't in his room. He stepped from behind the door frame, his face was pale and he also had red stains on his jeans. His face saddened as he put his hands in his jeans pockets, he looked down at the floor and sighed deeply to himself. I felt Nonie quickly remove her arms from around me, she hurried out of my room and pushed Backup out of her way. I wonder what as happened?


	30. What Do You Say?

**Hey, Nukia here!**

**This fanfiction is a side story to Beyond This Love.**

**I don't know if any of my old readers are reading my rewrites anymore, but I'm going to keep going. Sorry for the delay, I've been busy like I said in my author's note in my last chapter. It will be like this for a month, also I turned off my guest reviews because my confidence keeps getting knocked. **

**But thank you for the reviews, favorites and the alerts! Also to the unknown people who read my fanfictions, I promise it will pick up at some point! If you don't like it, then don't read it.**

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter 30!<strong>

I placed my box of tissues down on my dressing table, I walked over to Backup and placed my hand on his shoulder. He looked up at me from the floor, he took hold of my wrist and pulled me out of my room. He took my housecoat from the back of the door and draped it around my shoulders as I watched a few students running down the corridor. I wonder what's going on? I turned my full attention back to Backup, I watched him close my room's door as I wrapped my housecoat around myself. He took hold of my arm and began to lead me down the corridor with a group of other students. I stopped him when we got to the door which led down to the ground floor of The Wammy House, I took hold of his arm and felt something wet on my hand. I quickly removed my hand from his arm and saw some red liquid on my hand, it looks like blood. I looked up from my hand at him, I shook my arm free from his hand and stepped away from him.

" What is going on?" I asked. " Is this blood?"

" You need to come with me, it's important..." He replied.

" Tell me what is going on first, why is everyone up at this ungodly hour?" I asked. " Please, what is going on? Why is Nonie so upset? I need to know why you have blood on your clothes, what have you done?"

" I have done noting wrong which may surprise you, it's not me who as sinned this day..." He replied as he put his finger tip to his lips. " It's amusing how you blame me the minute something tragic happens in the orphanage, I am not the conductor in my Alternatives little deadly mishap..."

" Deadly mishap?!" I asked, I quickly grabbed hold of Backup's arms and frowned at him. " What do you mean by deadly mishap?! What as happened to Aiden?! Please tell me now!"

" So you were both on first name bases, how interesting..." He replied with a smirk. " I hate being the barer of bad news, but our Alternative is no more. He's not of this earthly realm, he ceases to exist or should I just say he his dead..."

" You're lying!" I frowned.

" If I was lying then why is Nonie crying?" He asked." Didn't I tell you that someone we both know was going to leave us very soon, I for one would never joke about my Alternative's demise..."

I felt my heart stink in my chest, A can't be dead. He was meant to be spending the night with me in my room tonight, Backup must be lying. I removed my hands from his arms, I noticed more of the red liquid on my hands as I let out a quiet sob. This would explain why Nonie was so upset, he can't be dead. I looked up at Backup from my hands, he was watching me with a blank expression on his face. He reached his hand towards my face, he wipe a few tears away from my cheek with his thumb as he lowered his gaze from mine.

I shooed his hand away from my face, I pushed him away from me and ran through the doorway that led to the ground floor. I felt my housecoat fall from my shoulders as I hurried down the two flights of staircases, I barged through a group of students as I left the stairwell. I ran along the corridor that led to A and Backup's room, I need to see him. I turned right into another corridor, I saw some yellow tape stealing off part of the corridor where a group of students were standing. I stopped dead in the corridor when I saw a body bag being wheeled out from a room on a stretcher, I covered up my mouth with my hands and fell onto my knees. I let out a sob as I covered up my face with my hands, I felt something soft being draped around my shoulders. I looked up to see Backup standing next to me, I watched him crouch next to me and place his hand on my shoulder.

" Do you believe me now?" He asked. " I am also grieving for my Alternative's death, his demise saddened me even though I knew his life was coming to an end. I never a said a single word when I saw his lifespan counting down to his last hour, I acted normal and went to sleep well he listened to his music on his cd player..."

" How did it happen?" I asked quietly.

" He committed suicide, his depression got the best of him..." He replied in a softer tone. " I found him on the bathroom floor when I woke in the night to use the toilet, blood was his death-bed this night. His wrists were cut in the most perfect vertically lines, there is no hope of surviving vertical wrist wounds because they are physically impossible to sew up. But he looked peaceful, all those years of stress gone in moments. How I envied him in a way, his sorrow as ended and ours have just begun..."

" Why did he do this?" I asked. " He was always happy and telling terrible jokes, he never let on that he was suffering to make him want to commit suicide. Nonie once told me he went through a stage where he hurt himself, but other than that he was always happy around me..."

" Maybe he had us all fooled, no one truly knows a person better than themselves..." He replied as he removed his hand from my shoulder and got up from the floor. " Let me take you somewhere quiet, I've heard that Nonie as been taken to the television room by Watari. We could go and keep her company, she will need our support in this dark hour of bereavement. She was his half sibling after all, her pain must be more excruciating than ours..."

I looked up at Backup as I wiped some tears away from my cheek and gave him a nod, if he only knew the truth about me and A. I got up from the floor, I wrapped my housecoat around myself and walked with him back along the corridor. I looked over my shoulder when I heard Mr Ruvie's voice, he was shooing some students back down the corridor and telling them to go back to their rooms. I turned my full attention back to Backup, I quickened my walking pace and followed him into the television room. I stopped in the doorway when I saw Watari putting some medication bottles back into a white plastic box, I wonder what tablets are in those bottles? I saw Nonie sleeping on the sofa, he covered her up with a blanket and gave Backup a small smile as he perched himself on the end of the sofa Nonie was sleeping on.

" Watari, may inquire what sleeping medication you have given Nonie?" He asked as he put his finger tip to his lips. " I know she normally takes Ambien to help her sleep, but changing it Benzodiazepines which is known for being effectively used to treat sleep problems such as sleepwalking and night terrors. Will it have any effect on her health after you've changed her sleeping medication after 24 hours of her last dose of Ambien?"

" My dear Beyond Birthday, you have such an inquisitive mind sometimes..." Watari replied and picked his plastic box of medications up from the arm of the sofa. " But if you have concerns about your friend's health then may I unsure you that it's perfectly fine to prescribe her a stronger dose of sleeping tablet just this once. She will be taken in a short well to the hospital wing for supervision for the next 48 hour, but you will be allowed to visit her. At times like these you will need your friends around you, but for now if you would excuse me I have arrangements I need to deal with in my office..."

" I do believe it's unsafe to leave her unsupervised, would you like me to watch over her until she is taken to the hospital wing?" He asked. " It would be a pity if something unfortunate happened to her well you were away due to the medications you have given her, did you check if she is allergic to any of the ingredients in Benzodiazepines?"

I watched Watari talking with Backup, he explained to him that he had read through Nonie's medical notes before he prescribed her a different kind of sleeping table. I often wonder how he copes with Backup's curiosity, he always seems to question everything Watari teaches him. I looked over my shoulder into the corridor when I heard a few students talking about A's suicide, it seems that everyone in the orphanage knows that his death was not an accident. I walked into the television room as I wrapped my housecoat around myself and sat down on a chair at a table in the corner of the room. I looked back over at Watari and watched him gently patting Backup's shoulder as he spoke kindly to him.

" My dear boy, you know where I am if you need me. I know how close you had gotten with A over the years, but you need to be strong for the other students now and find a way to help them through their grieve..." Said Watari as he made eye contact with me and gave me a warm smile. " Elizabeth my dear, may I ask if you would keep an eye on Nonie until the nurses from the hospital wing come and collect her?"

" Yes Mr Wammy, I will keep both of my eyes on her until they come and collect her..." I replied.

" Thank you my dear, now if you would both excuse me..." He said.

I watched Watari leave the television room, I crossed my arms on the table top and rested my chin on my hands. I tilted my head slightly as I looked over at Nonie sleeping on the sofa, I never knew she took sleeping tablets. I guess we all have our own little secrets at The Wammy House, I for one do not know how I will cope without A. He really was my rock in this place, he was there for me when my Aunt Thora passed away and he took take of me when I was ill. I closed my eyes as I felt tears rolling down my cheeks, I sat up straight at the table and wiped away my tears with my hands.

" You are truly terrible at hiding your emotions, to cry is to show you have weakness..." I heard Backup say. " I can control my emotions unlike most students in the orphanage, you have to lock each emotion away deep down inside of you until you are ready to release them. I'm saving mine for the right time, I once remember my Alternative telling me that emotions can be your most powerful weapon..."

" A once told me that emotions can also bring strength for loved one in their time of need, I need to be strong for Nonie now just like A was strong for me when I lost my Aunt..." I sniffled and looked over at him. " We both have to look out for Nonie now, she as lost her big brother and she will need our support until she tells us to go away..."

" And what about me?" He asked." Will you be supporting me too? I'm grieving for my Alternative, but in a different way than you and Nonie. I'm gaining power from the grief I'm feeling for him, it's making me feel restless..."

" I guess so, I wouldn't turn my back on you if that's what you are implying..." I replied.

" Good, I need more pawns in this chess game that I call life..." He said as he stepped down from the sofa. " I will come and find you in a few hours time, I need to speak to Watari about my new accommodation for the night. Clearly I cannot sleep in my room with all the evidence and tape sealing off my bathroom, it would be very unhygienic for a start and I will be needing washing facilities after all..."

" I see..." I said quietly.

I listened to Backup talking for a while about A and other things to do with suicide related crimes, it shames me to say that he knew more about A than I did. I sighed to myself and hid my face in my folded arms as I my bottom lip began to tremble, I wish he would stop talking. I heard Backup say goodbye to me, I peeped from my folded arms and watched him leave the room. It wasn't long before nurse Clark appeared with a female nurse wheeling a stretcher into the room, I asked if I could visit Nonie at some point today and I got told that they would ask Watari if I was allowed to see her today. Nurse Clark told me to go and get some rest in my room, she even offered me a couple of sleeping tablets to help me sleep because she knew I was close friends with A. I refused to take any from her, I left the television room and quickly hurried back to my room.

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><p>I wrapped my red coat around myself as I walked along the pathway that led to The Wammy House's cemetery, A was buried over two weeks ago. His funeral was nothing fancy, just a few prays in the orphanage's chapel and then a procession of students holding candles led by Watari to the cemetery. Not many students cried at his funeral, I didn't cry either because I wanted to be brave for Nonie. But when I got to my room it was different story, I cried myself to sleep. I'm going to miss him, he was my best friend and companion. I opened the old iron gate to the cemetery, I sighed to myself and continued following the pathway.<p>

The cemetery was quiet, not many students came here unlike Backup who liked creeping around here sometimes. I've seen him many times entering the cemetery and disappearing in this place for hours, I guess he finds peace here or he could be obsessed with death. I stopped at a white marble gravestone, the was no date of birth or death day on A's gravestone, just a golden gothic styled letter A. I took a white paper bag from my coat pocket, I crouched in front of his grave and opened the bag. I had brought A's favorite treat, he loved toffee more than anything and even had a favorite toffee brand. I took a toffee from the bag, it was wrapped in a golden wrapper and I placed it down on his grave. I came here everyday to place a toffee on his grave, the funny thing was that the toffee I placed here the day before would always be gone. I like to think that A came down from heaven to eat the toffee I left for him, it's silly idea but it makes me smile through these hard times.

" May I inquire why you place a toffee on his grave each day since he was buried?" I heard someone ask from behind me. " He can not eat them, I find it quite pointless wasting perfectly good toffee on the dead..."

I glanced over my should to see Backup standing behind me, I got up from the ground and put my bag of toffee back into my coat pocket. I tucked some of my hair behind my ear as I turned around the face him, I wrapped my arms around myself and shivered. It wasn't warm at all today, autumn was passing and winter was beginning. I looked him up and down as I sniffled, I wonder if he ever get's cold. He was wearing his normal long-sleeved black shirt and blue baggy jeans, I often wonder if he his human enough to feel the cold.

" Are you not cold?" I asked.

" No, the cold doesn't bother me anymore..." He replied. " But I am here to tell you that Nonie is planning to leave the orphanage this evening, she wanted to say goodbye to you before she left. But for now you may talk to his empty grave, I was once told by my grandmother when I was a child that the dead loved music. The thought amuses me of bodies dancing in their coffins, a silly little old story..."

" What do you mean by empty grave?" I asked.

" His body was not in his coffin before his service, I wanted to take one last peak at my old friend before he became worm food. But to my surprise he was not in his coffin, it's an unsolved mystery I may not crack until I'm in the grave myself..." He replied with a chuckle." I wonder where his body is truly buried because he his not in that grave, I for one believe that something unnatural or mysterious is going on here. What do you think?"

" A was cremated, I thought you knew that already..." I replied and glanced back at his gravestone. " Mr Wammy told me that he was getting cremated before he was buried, something about DNA and no traces to be left behind. Even in death he as to be unknown, but I will always remember him as Aiden Michael Tayler for as long as I shall live..."

" So he told you his true name, he must have trusted you to share something that was meant to be unknown to people's ears, very interesting indeed..." He said as he crouched in front of me and looked up at me. " Tell me Elizabeth, was there more to your friendship? You can not lie to me because I will know or I have seen with my own two eyes that there was more to your friendship, sometimes the littlest of things can not be hidden from sight..."

" Would it matter if there was more to mine and A's friendship anymore?" I asked.

" Most probably not anymore, at least he found happiness in his short life just the once. Some people can live for 60 years and never find one moment of pure happiness, it's quite sad if you think about it..." He replied with a sigh." But it would have never worked out, you and him were not the same after all. He would have never been allowed to have anyone by his side just the same as me and Nonie. To be a successor of L is to be alone, if you open your heart and begin to care for others then you would most likely end up dead just like my poor Alternative..."

" I see..." I muttered.

" But let's say if you managed to escape this place, then rules would not abide to you anymore..." He smirked." Let's say if you ran away from the orphanage, you would get your freedom back and would be able to lead the life you always wanted to have in the first place. Your place is not here amongst these kind of people, you're meant to be living back in your little cottage with your family..."

" I'm 16 and you very well know I'm not allowed to leave The Wammy House until I turn 18, also you know all of my family passed away years ago. I'm trapped at the orphanage just like you and many other students here until they are old enough to lead their own life's or get a job in a profession that suits their skills, I for one will not be a scientist or a superior surgeon or in your case a detective..." I sighed and knelt in front of him. " What's wrong Backup? Why are you talking about these kind of subjects?"

" I'm curious about the outside world, I've never really lived in a community of people since the age of 8 years old. I want to pursue my dreams rather than letting them riot away inside of these orphanage's walls, I do not want to be forced into a future that I despise..." He replied. " To watch a friend fade away in terrible circumstances in front of my own two eyes, I don't want to live here anymore. I want to leave this place and make my own mark on this world, if I decided to leave the orphanage would you care to accompany me?"

" I don't know, I have no means to supporting myself until I turn 18 and I will not be entitled to my inheritance money until then..." I replied. " Why don't you go with Nonie, if you asked Watari surely he would let you leave too if you don't want to be here anymore..."

" It is not that easy, I am the only successor of L left in The Wammy House. The backup and predecessor to Alternative, I am afraid it will be not so easy for me to leave this place without a fight..." He said. " I see my only option being to leave this place without anyone's knowledge, but I need a backup as well. This is why I'm proposition this offer to you, I need a guide and friend in the outside world. Also I will need someone to assist me with research and the booking of tickets, if I logged onto my file on the computer then questions would arise when they checkup on my computer history..."

" But won't I get into trouble then if I research on your behalf?" I asked, I got up from the ground and brushed some dirty away from my coat. " You're asking a lot of me, I'm not sure these ideas you're having are a good ideas. You're only 16 after all, you're basically a child in the eyes of the law with no money and how far do you think you'll exactly get if Watari or Mr Ruvie go looking for you? You're just dreaming Backup, there is no way of escaping this place unless you leave it in a coffin!"

" That was a morbid tone you just took with me, but you're right about the coffin part..." He smirked. " I would not leave the orphanage without planning it first, it may take months to sort something out. But I would like your help even if it's just researching travel destinations out for me or finding out prices of airplane tickets, I would appreciate it if you helped me escape this place..."

" I don't know, I don't want you to get hurt or leave here until you're old enough to support yourself..." I sighed. " Nothing good can come from the ideas you're creating in your mind, how would you support yourself anyway?"

" I'm not to such yet, but I have access to money if that would make you feel any better..." He replied. " There is an electronic safe full of money sitting in Mr Ruvie's office behind a bookcase, I do not think he would notice if I borrowed some of it. The money is for the orphanage after all, it would be funding my future..."

" Stealing?!" I asked as I crossed my arms." Then I will defiantly not help you, I will not be part of your plans if it involves crime! How could you even think about stealing, it's so wrong!"

" I'm keeping my options open until I have made a decision, but please think it through before you make your final decision..." He replied. " I do not want to end up like my poor Alternative, he did not deserve this kind of life. Why don't you help me on the behalf of my Alternative, I know he would want us both to be free and not kept caged like wild animals..."

" Okay, I'll think about it!" I sighed.

" Excellent, what a delightful answer you have given me..." He smirked. " But for now we should go back to the orphanage, Nonie will be leaving at 5:30pm on the dot, we would not want to miss her departure..."

I watched Backup get up from the ground, he looked over the cemetery's gate and put his hands in his jean pockets. He glanced back at me with a smirk on his face, he told me not to breathe a word of what we spoke about to anyone. I agreed to keep it a secret, but I don't want to be part of his plan. He beckoned me to follow him with a nod, I followed after him and we both left the cemetery.


	31. Puzzles and Research

**Hey, Nukia here!**

**This fanfiction is a side story to Beyond This Love.**

**I don't know if any of my old readers are reading my rewrites anymore, but I'm going to keep going. Sorry for the delay, I've been busy like I said in my author's note in my last chapter. I hate being falling behind on this fanfiction, I was just getting into it and now I'm failing. Hopefully it makes sense, but it will work out I hope in the end! **

**But thank you for the reviews, favorites and the alerts! Also to the unknown people who read my fanfictions, I promise it will pick up at some point! If you don't like it, then don't read it.**

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><p><strong>Chapter 31!<strong>

A few hours had passed, it was time to say goodbye to Nonie. After A's death she had not been herself and would not socialize with other students. Somedays she would not even leave her room, so Watari decided to sent her away to another orphanage in America until she turned 18. I'm not really sure what state she was going to be located in for safety reasons, but she promised she would write to me and let me know how she is doing in months time. It was a short goodbye, she said she didn't want any fuss and wanted to get away from The Wammy House. But before she left she gave me a package that was addressed to me, she told me she had found it duct tapped under A's bed when she was helping to box up his belongings to be stored in the attic. There was also a letter for Backup and Nonie, I guess you could call them his last goodbyes.

I waved Nonie off and watched the taxi she was in drive down the driveway, hopefully she will be okay in America. I walked back to the orphanage with Backup, he told me he would come and find me later on after he had tended to some private business. I stopped at the bottom of main staircase near the entrance of The Wammy House, I watched Backup walk up the staircase and disappear through a doorway. I sighed to myself and made my way back to my room, I guess I should see what's in the package Nonie had found under A's bed. I closed my room's door behind me, I placed the package on my bed and hung my coat over the back of my dressing table's chair. I walked over to my bed, I turned my bedside table's lamp on and sat down on my bed.

I picked my package up from my bed, I ran my finger tips over A's handwriting and smiled slightly to myself. I always thought his handwriting was pretty, it was so fancy with curls and ever so neat. I turned the package over and carefully opened the back of it, I peeped inside of the package and took a cassette tape from it. I bit at my bottom lip as I placed the cassette tape down on my bed, I took another look inside of the package and took a folded up sheet of paper from it. I opened up the sheet of paper, I read through the letter A had written me and sighed to myself. He had written that he was sorry that he had to leave me, he didn't want to go but he didn't have a choice in the matter and that he would watch over me until we met again in another lifetime. It confused me how he wrote matter, surely you have a choice if you want to live or die. I folded the sheet of paper back up, I carefully put it back into the package and got up from my bed.

I took the cassette tape from my bed, it said on the back of it to collect my old Walkman from Backup. I left my room and hurried along the corridor, I hope A's old Walkman didn't get sent to the attic with the rest of his belongings. I stopped at the last door of the corridor, I knocked on the door and looked down at the cassette tape in my hand. I'm not sure what's on this cassette tape, but I don't own a Walkman anymore so I wouldn't be able to listen to it. I heard the door unlock, I looked up from the tape and saw Backup peeping his face through the gap between the door and the door frame. He had moved to a room on the same floor as me now, he would not be able to move back into his old room for a few weeks yet because it was still tapped off and under forensic investigation.

" May I help you?" He asked in a low tone. " I am very busy at the moment, please be quick..."

" I didn't know if you would be in your room yet, but I need to ask you something..." I replied. " Do you have a Walkman I can borrow? There was a letter from A in the package Nonie gave me and it said come to you for his old Walkman..."

" So you have read the letter my poor Alternative had left you, I knew you would be coming to my room soon to collect his old Walkman..." He replied and opened his room's door wide. " I have it prepared for you, all you need to do now is listen to that tape you have in your hand. I'm curious about the countenance of that cassette tape, may I listen to it when you have finished?"

" I'm not sure, you will have to wait until I have listened to it first..." I replied." Then I will decided if you can listen to it or not, but for now will you please give me the Walkman so I can listen to the tape..."

" Of course, please wait in the corridor until I return..." He smirked.

Backup closed the door slightly and disappeared back into his room, I heard rustling sounds coming from his room and took a quick peep through the gap in the doorway. His room was dark, there were papers scattered across the floor and there was also a weird smell coming from his room. I quickly stepped away from the door, I tucked some of my hair behind my ear and looked down the corridor. I saw a group of girls staring at me from the other end of the corridor, I quickly turned my gaze away from them when I released it was the girls from the dinner hall A was sitting with a few weeks ago at breakfast time. It wasn't long before Backup returned, he held a yellow Walkman with kitten stickers on it towards me and then looked down the corridor at the girls as I took the Walkman from his hand.

" Thank you..." I said quietly.

" Are those girls bothering you?" He asked.

" No, I'm just ignoring them like I do with the other students these days..." I replied. " I've noticed most of them have ignored me since A's death, I'm not sure why though..."

" If anyone gives you anymore trouble then I suggest you tell me about it, I will silence each and every one of them on the behalf of my Alternative for you..." He smirked. " It's my job to be your lookout now, I'm going to be like your shadow until I leave this place and not let any of those peroxide frivolous young girls bother you. But I will solve this little mystery for you, I will find out why everyone is treating you differently these days..."

" Thank you Backup, I'm glad you've got my back for now..." I smiled slightly as I spoke quietly to him. " I will see you at dinner, I want to listen to this cassette tape first. But we can hang out later if you want and I'll help you with your leaving plans, by the way what is that strange smell coming from your room?"

" Epoxy, it's a glue resin to stick my fake passport together..." He replied and partly closed his room's door. " I will meet you in the dinner hall this evening, but goodbye for now..."

" I see, well remember to open a window or something because of the fumes!" I said through the little gap between the door and door frame. " We don't want you getting high off fumes or passing out in your room without anyone's knowledge, I'll see you later!"

I wrinkled my nose as he closed his room's door, I walked back down the corridor to my room and opened my room's door. I walked through the doorway, I closed the door behind me and walked over to my bed. I sat down on it, I took the cassette tape from its case and pressed the eject button on the Walkman. I placed the cassette tape in the Walkman, I put the earphones on and pressed the play button on it. I picked the case of the cassette tape up from my lap, I looked inside of it to see 5 songs written inside of it. The first song began to play on the Walkman, Runaway by Bon Jovi. I took the cover from the cassette tape's case, I tilted my head as I read the song titles in my head. It was weird, some of the letters were written in bold. I grabbed my note-book from my bag, I took a pen from my bedside table's draw and jotted down the bold letters as I spoke them out loud to myself.

" E, L, S, O, L, N, A, G, S, G, E, N, B..." I said as I put my pen to my lips. " Paradise City by Guns N' Roses, Poison by Alice Cooper, Angel by Aerosmith, Time of your life by Green day and Runaway by Bon Jovi..."

I placed my note-book down on my lap, I turned the cover of the cassette tape's case over and looked at the other songs written on the back of it. None of the letters in these song titles were in bold, I wonder if it's some kind of clue or code. I curled my legs under myself and began to write random words down in my note-book that I could spell with the bold letters, if there is a clue or a code in these bold letters then I must solve it.

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><p>I opened the door to the library and walked through its doorway, I quietly closed the door behind me and tucked some of my hair behind my ear as I walked over to the computer area of the library. I had agreed to help Backup escape The Wammy House after he let me borrow A's old Walkman so I could listen to the cassette tape, he as been kind of nice to me and I guess I owe him a favour just for showing me some kindness unlike some of the students in the orphanage who have ignored me since Nonie left. I'm not sure why they are ignoring me, I've not done anything wrong as far as I know. I smiled at Miss Joyce as I placed my bag down by a computer desk, I placed my physics books down on the desk and sat on the chair in front of the computer. I switched the computer on, I took my note-book from my bag and typed my password into the orphanage's login page.<p>

" Okay, let's see..." I said to myself.

I unclipped my black pen from my note-book, I opened it up and rested my pen on my bottom lip as I opened up the explorer on the computer. I'm not exactly sure where Backup wants to go, he never really said which destination he wanted to runaway to. I tapped my pen against my lip and took a look around the library. There were many books about different countries on the book shelves, maybe I should just type random countries into the google and see what flights leave Heathrow Airport in the next few weeks. I placed my pen down on my note-book, I began to type in random countries flight departures into google. To my surprise there was many flights leaving Heathrow Airport in the next two weeks and they were very expense too. I began to jot down locations, prices and dates down into my note-book. I looked over my shoulder when I heard the library's door open, I saw a group of girls enter the library with Backup following behind them. It looked like he was creeping, I sighed to myself and turned my attention back to my note-book. I continued jotting down flight details until my note-book was took from under the tip of my pen, I looked up from my pen and saw Backup reading my notes. He pulled a chair away from one of the other computer desks, he perched himself on it and put his finger tip to his lips as he continued to read through my notes.

" Very good, you really have done an excellent job finding flight details for me..." He smirked. " But I would advise you to log off from your computer file right now, you are drawing too much attention to yourself. It seems that Miss Joyce is on the telephone to Watari, she is at this very moment reporting strange behavior from one of the students in the library. Unfortunately she does not know this student's name, but if I may suggest that you do a random search on any historical figure then it may change her mind into believing you are doing research for a homework assignment..."

I looked over at Miss Joyce talking on the telephone, she placed the receiver down on the telephone and made eye contact with me. I gasped as I quickly turned around on my chair, I accidentally knocked my books off the computer desk with my elbow and whispered to Backup as I picked them up from the floor.

" Like who?" I whispered. " Quickly, please give me an idea before I get into trouble!"

" Maybe I could suggest a good old-fashioned serial killer, so may wonderful serial killers to choice from..." He replied with a smirked. "The Zodiac Killer, Ted Bundy, Green River Murders, The Rostov Ripper and my personal favorite Jack The Ripper. You now have ideas, so you can choose one to study before Miss Joyce comes over to check on your computer search history..."

" I can't choose a serial killer to do research on, they would know that was defiantly unusual behaviour all together coming from me..." I sighed, I quickly typed a random name into the google search engine and took my note-book from Backup. " Now no one will suspect me now unless they check my computer history, I can say I'm doing historical figure research on Guy Fawkes and I accidentally clicked on a travel website. It can be like research on historical events that happened on my birthday even though he did not die until the 31st January 1606..."

" Ah yes, but alas he was not the main conspirator in the Gunpowder Plot. He was a pawn in a game bigger than he had expected, he was the guard of the gunpowder and had the orders to lite it when the time was right. But he was caught before anything could be put into motion, the gunpowder was decayed anyway and would have not explode if it was lit..." He said as he put his finger tip to his lips. " But gunpowder sounds fun to play with to be honest, I myself would like to experiment with it at some point in my lifetime..."

" I don't think you would be trusted with high explosives, you can't even be trusted with can opener in home economics..." I sighed and closed my note-book. " Can I ask you if you've figured out yet why I'm being ignored by most of the students? I hate to say it but you're the only student in the orphanage who will talk to me, no other student will give me the time of day anymore..."

" Maybe it's a sign that you do not belong here, but I have heard one or maybe two rumours where your name as been mentioned..." He replied. " Rumor as it that you are to blame for Nonie leaving The Wammy House, apparently she blames you for Alternative's death. I've also heard that you were responsible for the fire in the attic a few days ago, but I know for a fact that it was not you. I was the one who started the fire in the attic, I was burning evidence to a case I had been working on with my Alternative in a metal bucket..."

" What case was that?" I asked.

" It was confidential information, I can not share any information about the case with you..." He replied and stepped down from the chair. " But I can tell you that I did not want to share my hard work with my mentor, I believe he does not deserve anymore help with his precious criminal cases since he destroyed my poor Alternative's life. He as to be taught a lesson and I will be the one to teach him it, but it will take time for me to think of a worthy punishment. But he will suffer, I will make him pay for destroying innocent life's of children..."

" You shouldn't really hold a grudge against him, when you leave this place you will never have to deal with him ever again..." I said quietly. " Would you like to get something eat with me? I don't want to spend another lunch hour sitting alone in the dinner hall, I could do with the company..."

" Yes lunch, I am kind of peckish right now for a jar of strawberry jam..." He replied.

" Great, just give me a moment to pack my bag!" I smiled.

I quickly put my note-book and pen back into my bag, I got up from the chair in front of the computer desk and hung my bag over my shoulder. I logged myself out of the computer and switched it off. I picked my physic books up from the desk, I gave Backup a slight smile and walked with him out of the library. He even held the door open for me which was surprising, he had changed a lot since A's suicide. He's become more friendly for a start, I'm not even sure if that's a good thing. We turned right into another corridor, I heard Backup say something about hurried footsteps and that we should move out of the way. I looked over my shoulder and saw a group of young boys hurrying along the corridor behind us. I quickly moved out of their way, I watched them run pass me and then felt my books being knocked from my arms. I heard them laughing as they carried on running down the corridor, I really hate the orphanage sometimes. I sighed to myself as I placed my bag down on a bench near me and picked my books up from the floor.

I looked down the corridor when I heard one of the young boys yell, I saw Backup dragging one of the boys back along the corridor by his ankle. I dropped my books back on the floor, I watched him yank the young boy up from the floor by his arm and push him against the wall. I quickly walked over to him as he pinned the boy against the wall with his arm, what does he think he's doing? I grabbed hold of Backup's arm, I tried to pull his arm away from the boy and failed. He maybe tall and quite skinny, but he was strong when the occasion called for it.

" Apologise to her!" He frowned.

" Backup, let him go!" I said as I tried to pull his arm away from the boy again." You're going to get into a lot of trouble if Mr Ruvie or Watari see's you threatening other students, please let him go before you hurt him! He's just a child, he didn't know any better..."

" Not until he apologies to you, I could take him somewhere more quiet if he desired..." He smirked." What do you say fellow student? Would you like to take this little disagreement somewhere more private instead of playing out this little scenario in front of a lady?"

I pulled at is arm again as I told him to let him go, I managed to pull his arm away from the boy this time and dragged Backup away from him. I watched the boy quickly run away down the corridor, I let go of his arm and walked over to my books on the floor. I crouched next to them and began picking them up from the floor, I just hope that boy doesn't tell Watari or Mr Ruvie about what Backup just did to him. I picked my books up from the floor, I placed them down on a bench and got up from the floor. I watched Backup perch himself on the bench next to my bag, he glance at me and picked my note-book up from my pile of my books. He opened it up, he began to flick through my note-book's pages and stopped at the back page. He held my note-book between his finger and thumb as he tilted his head.

" What is this in the back of your note-book?" He asked. " A letter puzzle, how interesting. But it seems that you are failing in your efforts to try and solve it, may I try and crack it for you?"

" Be my guess, I've tried every known word that can be spelt from those letters. It's from the case cover of the cassette tape that was in the package from A, there were 5 songs written on the back of the cover with random letters from the songs in bold..." I replied. " It's always the B that causes the problem, I'm not sure if it's meant to be one word or separate words. Maybe I've got it wrong, he may have just done a few letters in bold out of boredom or decoration. What do you think?"

" Alternative never did anything without a purpose, this may come as a surprise to you but this code is something he use to do when he was under the age of 11..." He replied. " A simple letter puzzle, I'm surprised you haven't managed to work it out. But seeing as you IQ is only 108 which is the normal or average intelligence of a person, then it doesn't surprise me that you struggled with this puzzle..."

" Okay smarty pants, you figure it out then..." I sighed.

I picked my bag up from the bench, I slumped down next to him on bench and placed my bag on my knee. I watched as Backup pointed to each letter with his finger tip, he quickly moved his finger tip to each letter and muttered different words under his breath. He let out a quiet chuckle as he placed my note-book down on my physic books, he quickly unzipped my bag and took my little notepad from it. I opened my mouth to say something to him and was hushed by one of his finger tips on my lips. I watched place my notepad on top of my note-book, he turned to the page where I had written the flight details for him. Here moved his finger tip from my lips and pointed to one of the country locations, he was pointing to Los Angeles.

" I believe this clue may have been left for me, I think my Alternative may have known you would have come to me for help. The left over B was the final clue, it stands for Backup or maybe Beyond..." He Said as he closed my notepad. " But then again it could be a message for you too, maybe it's my Alternative's way of telling you to come with me. Your situation right now is not exactly rosie, the rumors and the way students treat you after those make-believe lies... "

" Maybe you're right, but it's still a big decision for me to make right now..." I said quietly and leant my head back against the wall as I looked up at the corridor's ceiling. " But it doesn't make sense, why would A leave a clue behind like that anyway?"

" Maybe he's guiding you, making sure your life runs easy after his departure..." He replied.

" But my life is not easy no more, I miss him..." I sighed.

" So do I my dear Elizabeth, so do I..." I heard him say with a sigh. " I believe we should get some lunch, then I shall go and make a few arrangements..."

" What kind of arrangements?" I asked.

" You will see in time, but I will need your help once again..." He replied.


	32. It Is Time

**Hey, Nukia here!**

**This fanfiction is a side story to Beyond This Love.**

**I don't know if any of my old readers are reading my rewrites anymore, but I'm going to keep going. Sorry for the delay, I've been busy like I said in my author's note in my last chapter. I'm not sure about this chapter, I think it makes sense and I'm sorry if it doesn't! But I will be back with my regular updates soon, then I can get this fanfiction finished and get back to Beyond This Love. **

**But thank you for the reviews, favorites and the alerts! Also to the unknown people who read my fanfictions, I promise it will pick up at some point! If you don't like it, then don't read it.**

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter 32!<strong>

It was just after 1:30am, the students and teachers of The Wammy House's were asleep or in their room's for the night. I carefully put a pair of blue latex gloves on my hands as I watched Backup picking Mr Ruvie's office door's lock, I don't know why I agreed to help him borrow or shall I say steal some of the orphanage's money from the office's electronic safe to pay for his airline ticket to Los Angeles. I don't know how he plans to get away with it, I mean won't they notice the money is missing if they kept a note on how much was in the safe at all times. I heard the door unlock, he put his lock picking kit into his black sports bag and carefully opened the door. He told me to carry his bag for him, I picked his bag up and watched him get up from the floor. He looked both ways down the corridor, he beckoned me to follow him before he disappeared into Mr Ruvie's office. I walked slowly into the office, I heard him close the office's door quietly behind me and I stopped in the middle of the room as I looked around it.

I always hated Mr Ruvie's office, it was to cluttered with furniture and antiques. There was also this strange smell coming from somewhere in the room, I'm not sure what makes the smell but it's unsettling. I felt Backup take hold of my wrist, he walk me over to an old stone fireplace on the other side of the room and took his bag from my hand as he stopped me near a old looking globe. He placed his bag down on the floor, he crouched in front of his bag and took a hand held torch from it. He switched it on and told me to shine it onto the fireplace for him. I nodded my head as I took the torch from his hand, I watched him crawl inside of the fireplace and knock on the back wall of the fireplace with his fist. I slightly bent over and watched him removing some bricks from the wall at the back of the fireplace.

" Backup, are you sure this is a good idea?" I asked quietly. " I mean what if we get caught, do you realize how much trouble we could get into if we're discovered in Mr Ruvie's office. Especially you Backup, you're meant to be a role model for most of the younger students in the orphanage even if that's hard to believe or if it's hard for me to believe..."

" Yes, my plan is perfectly thought through..." He replied. " Nothing can faultier it unless we're discovered, but I know Mr Ruvie is on medication right now which makes him drowsy. If we keep quiet and make no sudden noises then we will be fine, as you very well know his room is located right through that door over there..."

" What, I didn't know his room was right next to his office!" I whispered.

" Hush my dear, do not panic..." He chuckled.

I itched the back of my head as I looked over at the door to Mr Ruvie's room, if I had known his room was right next to his office then I wouldn't have agreed to help him. I looked back at Backup when I heard tell me to keep the torch still, I turned my attention back to him and blew my fringe away from my eyes. He had made a pile of bricks next to the fire poker stand, he took the torch from my hand and shone it onto the electronic safe. I bit at my bottom lip as I watched him typing the password into the number pad of the safe, I wonder how he managed to get hold of the password for the safe? I heard it beep, it unlocked and he opened it up. My eyes grew wide when I saw loads of bank notes piled up in wads, there must be thousands of pounds inside of the safe. I heard Backup tell me to hold the torch for him, I took the torch from his hand and watched him unzip his bag. He put a new pair of latex gloves on, he began to take wads of bank notes from his bag and exchange them with the wads of bank notes from the safe. I crouched on the other side of the bag, I took a wad of bank notes from his bag and took a closer look at it.

" Is this fake money?" I whispered.

" Yes, it was easy to get hold of in this place..." He replied.

" Where did you get fake money from?" I asked. " Surely someone will notice fake money going missing, how do you plan to get away with this?"

" I got it from the attic, there is a box full of fake notes hidden behind a book shelf in the attic..." He replied. " It's kept there for student study purposes, but by the time they figure it out I will already be miles away from the orphanage. My destination as been chosen, I will be leaving The Wammy House in 5 days time to Los Angeles and the offer is still open if you would like to join me on my little adventure..."

" That's pretty short notice for an important decision like that to me made and especially when you'll be leaving in 5 days time, do you even have a passport yet?" I asked.

" You very well know I have been making fake documents for the past few days, all I need is a yes or no from you in the next few minutes and I can easily make you some fake documents too..." He replied. " Time is ticking away, do you really what to spend some of your lifetime in this place when you can be living a normal life outside in the real world with someone who could take care for you if you desired it..."

"And I'm guessing that person is you?" I asked as I placed the wad of bank notes back into his bag and got up from the floor. " The person who once left me up a tree in the freezing cold, the same person who told me they would go for help and never came back. My list could go on forever with the times you've abandoned me, it's a good job A was always around or I may have turned into an ice lollie with the amount of times you locked me outside when I was emptying the kitchen's bins!"

" Childish pranks long forgot my dear, but please think about my offer..." He replied. " This maybe your last chance for a normal life, wouldn't you like to feel freedom once again?"

" Fine, I will think about it!" I sighed. " Just please hurry, I'm getting tired of holding your stupid torch for you!"

I watched Backup swap all of the wads of bank notes from the safe for the fake ones in his bag, he zipped his sport bag up and quickly put all of the bricks back into the wall of the fireplace. He carefully took the plastic carrier bags from his feet as he stepped out of the fireplace, he handed me the plastic carrier bags and picked his sports bag up from the floor. He took the torch from my hand, he switched it off and told me to stay close to him. We quietly left Mr Ruvie's office, we hurried along the corridor and made our way back to the floor our rooms were on. Backup asked me to join him in his room for a while, apparently he had something he needed to show me before I went to bed.

We both hurried into his room, he closed the door behind him and locked it. He walked over to his bed, he put his bag under his bed and told me to put the plastic bags in the bin as he walked to his bathroom. I did what he asked, I wiped my hands on my jeans as I sat down on a chair at his desk. I took a quick look around his room, it wasn't as messy or stinky like it was a few days ago. I picked a book up from his desk, he must be learning about DNA structure and functions. I flicked through the book's pages until he returned from the bathroom. I watched him switched his desk's lamp on, he opened his desk's draw and took a folded up denim jacket from the draw.

" I thought you may like one of my Alternative's denim jackets as a memento, I took it from one of his boxes with his belongings in it from the attic. I know you were close with him, but I think he would like you to have something of his to still feel close to him when you are feeling lonely..." He said and took his book from my hand. " Excuse the mess in my room, I need to clear most of my belongings out before I leave. Most of it will be left behind, but if you would like to borrow my things then be my guess..."

I took A's jacket from him, I placed it down on my lap and ran my finger tips over it. I sighed to myself as I put my hand into the jacket's pocket, I took a few empty toffee wrappers from the pocket and looked at them. They were shiny and sticky, it makes me miss him even more seeing his favourite treat's wrappers in my hand. I remember A telling me sometimes it's better to go with the flow, just keep going and don't look back. Maybe that's what I should do, maybe I should accept his offer and get out of this place. I closed my hand as I looked up at Backup, he was looking through his book. I put the wrappers back into the jacket's pocket, I got up from the chair and hung A's jacket over the back of the chair as I cleared my throat.

" Beyond Birthday, may I come with you?" I asked quietly. " I think I want to go with you after all, I may not be able to offer you any money though. But I promise to be your companion, you said you would take care of me and I want to make sure that someone is looking after you because you get into a lot of trouble sometimes. I can also cook and clean for you, I could even get a job if you wanted or something when we get a visa so we can work..."

" If you must accompany me then I shall allow it, but getting a job would be out of the question seeing as you are still young in the eyes of the American government. I will need to make us both birth certificate, I will have to gather what I need in the morning to make them when I attend my normal lessons in Watari's office when he his not looking..." He replied and closed his book. " But for now I advise you to sleep, you will need your rest because the next few days will be hectic and full of homework. I want you to learn as much as you can about Los Angeles in the next 5 days, if you could look into accommodations in the Los Angeles area or maybe travel routes I will be very grateful..."

" Won't I get into trouble looking up stuff like that for you online?" I asked. " Especially since you said that Miss Joyce was watching me and talking to Watari on the telephone about a student acting oddly in the library, will that not raise more questions if I am seem again researching things that have nothing to do with school work?"

" I believe you will not get into trouble this time, I lied about Miss Joyce watching you..." He replied with a smirk. " You were not in any kind of trouble, I wanted to leave the library and talk to you somewhere more private without prying ears. But I was telling the truth about the computer's search history being checked for each student, but we will talk more later in the day..."

" Okay, I will try my best..." I nodded and picked A's denim jacket up from the back of the chair. " Maybe it's best if I could find some maps for Los Angeles and photocopy them, it would make much more sense than looking for them online. Also we can take them with us, but it will be harder finding accommodations in Los Angeles on the computer. Wouldn't it be better if you waited until you were in Los Angeles, I mean you could probably find a apartment faster that way instead of relying on a computer..."

" Alright, we will figure it out as best as we can when it's the daylight hours..." He smirked. " I believe you have a free period at 10am, that would be the best opportunity for you to begin your research seeing that most of the students will be in lessons and Miss Joyce normally goes for a break between the times 10am till 10:45am. Use this time to look into accommodations and rented apartments, just leave everything else to me..."

" This is not going to be easy, is it?" I asked.

" It will get easier when we leave this place, you just have to trust me..." He replied. " Now I will wish you a goodnight, I need to be left alone to think and continue making your documents..."

" Okay, Goodnight..." I said.

Backup escorted me to his room's door, he quietly opened it and looked both ways down the corridor. He told me to go carefully back to my room, I nodded to him and crept out of his room. I walked slowly down the dimly lit corridor to my room as I glanced over my shoulder and bit at my bottom lip, I just hope we don't get caught.

* * *

><p>Today is the day I leave The Wammy House, but only me and Backup know about it. We had been careful and planned each step of our journey out. Our flight had been booked to Los Angeles, we just had to pay for the tickets when we arrived at the Airport and we had to bring some ID with us to prove who we were when we paid for the airline tickets. Backup had made us both some passports, fake medical documents and fake IDs saying we were both over the age of 18. We even had alias names too, Backup had taken A's Mother and Father's names from A's personal information that was kept in his private files on the top floor of the orphanage, I have no idea how he managed to gain access to those kind of files with the doors having finger print scanners as locks on them.<p>

We had arranged to leave after Midnight, our flight didn't leave until 6pm on the 25th of November. So we had 3 days to get to Heathrow Airport, we had planned to walk all night to the Winchester train station and stay there until the train to London arrives. Then we would travel to London on the train, but that would leave us with 2 days to spare. I'm not sure what we will do when we get to London, but we have enough money to stay in a hotel when we get there for the night. But the next problem will be changing the money into USA dollars and how will we sneak the money onto the plane. I'm glad Backup is dealing with that side of the problem, he seems to have many ideas on smuggling the money out of the country.

But for now we just have to get through the day and act normal, we don't want anyone to notice that we're planning our escape route from the orphanage. On our lunch break me and Backup had walked around the building trying to figure out the best way to sneak out of The Wammy House, there is so many ways of getting out of this place. Backup had decided in the end that my room's window would be the easiest way out of the building, but I'm not sure how I will get down from my room seeing as it's on the second floor. But he told me to leave it to him, all I had to do was wait in my room for him and stay awake until he came to collect me.

I zipped up my duffel bag as I quietly hummed to myself, it was nearly 11:50pm. I had packed lightly like Backup had told me to, we had a long journey ahead of us and heavy bags would just slow us down. I quickly got changed into my black jeans and a blue long-sleeved t-shirt, I didn't fancy wearing a dress in this cold weather. I sat down on my bed, I put my sneakers on and tied my hair up into a messy bun. I grabbed A's denim jacket from the end of my bed, I put it on and wrapped my woolen black scarf around my neck. I looked over my shoulder when I heard a drumming noise coming from my room's window, I quickly crawl over to it and drew the curtains back. I saw Backup drumming his finger tips against the glass of the window, he gave me a smirk and disappeared from my view.

" Where did he go?" I asked myself as I quickly opened the window and partly leaned out of the it to see him climbing down a ladder. " You can't be serious, I'll end up falling or hurting myself..."

I watched him jump from the last step of the ladder, he looked up at me and beckoned me to follow him with his hands. I bit at my bottom lip as I slightly nodded my head at him, I grabbed my bag from my bed and switched the bedside table's lamp off. I hung my bag over my shoulder, I carefully climbed out of the window and began climbing down the ladder. It wasn't long until I got to the bottom of the ladder, I let out a sigh of relief as I stepped of the last step of the ladder. I watched him carefully pulled the ladder away from the wall, he placed it behind some bushes and made sure it was hidden from sight.

" Where did you get those ladders from?" I asked.

" It's not important, we need to hurry before the alarm is raised that two students are missing from their classes in the morning..." He replied, he quickly picked his sports bag up from the ground and took hold of my wrist as he walked me away from the bushes. " There maybe chances that they will try to find us, but I find it highly doubtful that they will waste their time looking for us. Many students have runaway from the orphanage in the past and they did not even lift a finger to find them, tragic isn't it?"

" Really? What about Watari? " I asked." Surely he would try and find missing students, I know he his a very kind hearted man and would travel to the ends of he earth to protect his students!"

" Especially Watari, he wouldn't notice because Mr Ruvie normally covers it up without his knowledge. Now please keep your voice down and try to keep up with me..." He replied with a sigh. " We need to hurry and get off The Wammy House's premises unseen, I know on the odd occasion they sometimes have a security office prowling the grounds with a guard dog. It's very rare, but it's better to be safer than sorry in these kinds of situations..."

" Okay then, lead the way..." I said quietly.

I quicken my walking pace to keep up with him, he really was a fast walker. I glanced over my shoulder several times as we hurried down a pathway that led to the woods near the orphanage, I felt Backup let go of my wrist and stop me at the gate that led into the woods. I watched him open the gate slowly, he told me to take one last look at orphanage before we left because it would be the last time I would ever be seeing this place. I turned my gaze away from him, I looked back down the pathway and sniffled. The orphanage was dark and still, but there was one light shining bright from the window of the attic. I wonder who is in the attic? I know no one used the attic expect for A when he was alive, maybe they're turning it into an office like I heard a few of the students mention in the last few weeks. I felt Backup take hold of my hand, he told me to hurry up and keep close to him as we made our way through the woods. I gave him a nod of my head as he pulled me through the gateway, he closed the gate behind us and led me down a pathway which led into the dark woods.


	33. What Have You Done?

**Hey, Nukia here!**

**This fanfiction is a side story to Beyond This Love.**

**I don't know if any of my old readers are reading my rewrites anymore, but I'm going to keep going. Sorry for the delay, I've been busy like I said in my author's note in my last chapter. This chapter feels rushed even it took me a few days to write, but now I can spend more time writing and get this fanfiction finished. I know I make mistakes in my chapters, I've not had time to go through them like I normally would when I'm not busy. **

**But thank you for the reviews, favorites and the alerts! Also to the unknown people who read my fanfictions, I promise it will pick up at some point! If you don't like it, then don't read it.**

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter 33!<strong>

We had been walking for over two hours now and it was getting colder. I'm actually not sure where we are going or where we are for that matter. But Backup reassured me a few times that he knew where we were going and it wouldn't be long until we found somewhere to rest for a while, we just had to keep following the stream until then. I wrapped my arms around myself as shivered, I quickened my walking pace to catch up with him and sighed. He looked down at me as he walked for a moment with a blank expression on his face, I often wondered what was going on in his head sometimes. He gently took hold of my arm and slowly led be down a steep embankment which led down to the stream, I wonder where we are going? I quickly grabbed hold of his arm as I slipped on some mud, I heard him chuckle under his breath as he told me to mind my step. He let go of my arm when we got to the bottom of the embankment, he pointed over to a wooden bridge and pulled down his hood on his black hoody.

" We can rest soon, but first I would like to show you something before we leave English soil..." He said with a smirk as he put his hands in his hoody pockets. " It's a place from your past with many happy memories for you, I thought it would be nice for you to say goodbye to it. I know you will be forever in my debt after you see it, maybe this will teach you that I'm not all bad. Why don't you walk ahead and tell me what you see..."

I gave him a quick nod as I walked past him and made my way over to the bridge. I glanced over my shoulder at Backup, he was still standing near the stream with a smirk on his face. I placed my hand on the bridge's banister and slowly walked across it as I looked over the side of the bridge. I opened a gate at the other end of the bridge, there was a pathway leading across a field. I heard footsteps on the bridge behind me, I looked up at Backup as he stopped besides me and put his hood back up on his hoody.

" Don't you remember this place?" He asked. " This is where we first meet years ago, I'm surprised you have not recognized where you are yet. But it is dark, things always look different under the light of the moon..."

" Is this the field behind my Aunt Thora's cottage?" I asked.

" The very same, I thought the perfect place for us to shelter for a while would be a place familiar to you..." He replied as he looked up at the night sky. " But I suggest we hurry, it looks like it will rain soon. We can stay here for about 3 hours and no longer unless you would like us to miss our train to London, do you understand?"

" Oh course, let's go!" I replied.

We walked along the pathway that led to my old home, I looked up at the sky when I heard a rumble of thunder and begin to quicken my walking pace to catch up with Backup. I watched him run ahead of me, he disappeared through the old gate of the back of the cottage and I heard him yelling to me to hurry up before it starts to rain. I began to slow down as I got to the wooden fence of the cottage, I opened the gate and quietly panted as I took a look around the garden. To my surprise the garden was well-kept, that must mean someone comes to the cottage still and takes care of it like Rose promised me long ago. I closed the gate behind me, I walked along the pathway as I looked around the garden and smiled to myself. It felt strange being back in my childhood home, so many lovely memories I have in this garden with my Aunt Thora and Rose well I was growing up. I looked along the pathway and saw Backup couched in front of the back door of the cottage, I wonder what he's up to? I stopped behind him, I watched him fiddling with the lock of the door and blew my fringe away from my eyes.

" What are you doing?" I asked.

" Picking the door's lock..." He replied.

" What?!" I gasped as I slightly frowned at him. " Please stop that right away!"

" Do you have a problem with me breaking into your cottage?" He asked. " We need shelter for the night or would you prefer we rested outside in the rain and cold night air which could lead to a chill?"

" Oh course I have a problem with it, you can't go around breaking into people's cottages!" I replied as I bent forward slightly and placed my hand on his right shoulder. " It's a crime, do you know how much trouble you could get into if you're caught? The police would be called and they would contact Watari, we would most probably end up in isolation until we turn 18 then!"

" Alright, may I break into your cottage then?" He asked as he continued to pick the lock of the door. " Seeing as this property will be yours one day, I am doing the polite thing and asking for your permission. But you forget that your cottage is in the middle of nowhere, so it's high unlikely that we will be caught or be seen by any by passers..."

" Yes, right after you began to pick the lock!" I replied with a sigh. " Fine then! I give you my permission to break into my future home just so we can get out of the cold for a while. But it will be nice to see the inside of my old home again, it's been so long since I've been allowed to step foot inside of it..."

I removed my hand from his shoulder, he continued to pick the door's lock and mumbled something about trespassing. I'm not sure what he was talking about, so I just left him picking the door's lock well I took a quick look through the kitchen's window. I couldn't see much because it was dark inside of the cottage, but I swear I could see the outline of a table in the kitchen. It wasn't long before Backup had picked the lock, he put his lock picking kit away and opened the door. I followed him through the doorway of the back door, I took hold of his hoody's sleeve and quietly closed the door behind me. We walked into the kitchen, I heard a clicking sound and the lights of the kitchen switched on. I felt Backup quickly jump and switched the kitchen's light off, the cottage must still have a electricity connection.

" Don't touch anything, we may not be alone..." I heard him whisper to me. " I shall search the cottage and make sure we're alone before we rest for a while, I want you to stay here well I take a quick look around..."

" No one should be here, Rose said nothing about tenants..." I whispered.

" And how sure can you be?" He asked. " She may have lied to you, adults sometimes lie to children to keep them happy. But to be on the safe side I shall explore the cottage to make sure we are alone first, do you understand?"

" Fine, just be careful..." I replied.

Backup handed me his sports bag, he carefully opened the door to the hallway and disappeared through the doorway. I placed his bag down on the kitchen table, I took my duffel bag off and hung it on the back of a chair at the table. I took a look around the room as I walked over to the kitchen counter, I opened the door of the cupboard above the stove and took a look inside of it. To my surprise there was a packet of biscuits in the cupboard, I rummaged around the cupboard and found a box of tea bags. Maybe he was right, what if someone was in the cottage with us. I looked over my shoulder when I heard the door creak, I saw Backup standing in the doorway with his hands in his hoody pockets.

" The cottage is empty, but I have my suppositions that someone may visit now and again for maintenance reasons..." He said quietly." But we should be safe for now, we shall stay for 3 hours like I said before and I guess we could help ourselves to some of the food in the cupboard. I neglected to mention that I did not bring any food with me, we shall go through each cupboard and see what we can find for snacks..."

" You maybe right, I've found tea and biscuits in the cupboard above the stove..." I smiled as I showed him the box of tea bags. " We can make some tea if the water is still turned on, I think I spotted a bag of sugar too and a tin of pineapple rings in the back of the cupboard. We should check the fridge also, maybe there's some milk or other kinds of foods we can cook and take with us for our train journey..."

" Alright, you can check the rest of the cupboards and I will check the fridge..." He smirked.

I gave him nod as I placed the box of tea bags down on the counter, I quickly looked through the rest of cupboards and found a few more food items. Backup had found some milk and ham in the fridge, I guess we will be having a feast because I found a loaf of bread in one of the cupboards. Also the water was still switched on, so we can have something hot to drink and a wash before we leave. I quickly made us some hot tea and a pile of ham sandwiches, we decided to take the biscuits with us on our train journey. We decided to stay in my old bedroom, it still had its lock on the door and would be the safest place to hide in case this mystery lodger comes back.

Backup had taken our bags to my old bedroom, I placed the sandwiches and hot drinks on a tray. I had a quick tidy around the kitchen and made sure everything we had used was back in its right place. I took the tray of food to my old bedroom, I placed it down on the floor of the room and went for a quick wash in the bathroom. When I returned to my old bedroom there were blankets on the floor with pillows, I wonder where he found those blankets? He left the room for a while to use the bathroom, I quickly got changed into a baggy blue t-shirt and wrapped a blanket around myself. It wasn't long before he returned, he locked the door behind him and lit a single candle so we didn't have to eat in the dark.

I took a small bite out of my sandwich as I watched Backup standing next to the room's window, he seemed lost in his own world well he ate his sandwich in silence. I pulled my knees to my chest as I looked around my old bedroom, it felt strange being back here. The walls were bare, there was no carpet down on the floor and the room seemed smaller for some reason. I heard Backup clear his throat, I turned my full attention to him and watched him sit down on the floor. He leant back against the wall and stretched his legs out in front of him as he put his hands behind his head.

" The weather is changing, there is a fog creeping across the field which puzzles me..." He sighed. " I'm sure it was meant to rain this night, maybe my weatherology skills are getting rusty with age. It as been a while since I took any interest in weather cycles, maybe I will read up on it at some point when we're settled in Los Angeles..."

" What are you talking about?" I asked.

" Nothing important, I'm discussing pointless topics with myself..." He replied. " But if you would like to begin a conversation before you fell asleep, then I would be grateful for the change of topic and maybe my mind would become silent for a few moments..."

" Okay then, may I ask where you found these blankets and pillows?" I asked as I popped my last piece of sandwich into my mouth. " Would you like some of the blankets in case you get chilly?"

" I found them in the room across from this one, I thought borrowing them for a few hours would not hurt the owner of them..." He replied. " I will return them to where I found them before we leave, but for now I suggest you get some sleep while I keep watch..."

" That's not fair, you need to sleep too..." I sighed.

" I will sleep when we're in London, but for now hush yourself and dream of a better life..." He chuckled. " I will not be lonely well you're sleeping, I have a friend to keep me company. I should tell you now that I've placed a baseball bat under the pile of blankets near to you, I believe we should take precautions when we're in the middle of the countryside because you never know who is lurking out there in the darkness..."

" You've seen Dawn of the Dead to many times or some other crazy horror film, I'm going to sleep now..." I said with a slight giggle. " But in the mean time if anyone knocks on the door remember not to answer it, there could be ghost sailors on the other side of the door here to claim their treasure..."

" Your humor amuses me as always, now get some sleep before I change my mind about keeping watch..." He smirked. " I will wake you in 3 hours time, enjoy your sleep well you can my dear..."

" Okay, goodnight..." I said.

I grabbed one of the pillow as I curled up on my side, I placed the pillow under my head and snuggled my face into it. I slightly peeped from the pillow at Backup and watch him for a while, he kept looking up at the ceiling for some reason. I sighed to myself as I pulled a few blankets from the pile near me, I covered myself with them and closed my eyes. I better get some sleep well I can, something tells me it's going to be a tiring day.

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><p>I quickly sat up when I heard a loud crash come from downstairs, I looked over at the door and noticed it was wide open. I got up from the floor and grabbed the baseball bat from underneath the pile of blankets, Backup was nowhere to be seen. I hurried out of the room and made my way downstairs. I called out for him a few times until he answered me back, it sounds like he's in the kitchen. I hurried to the kitchen, I gasped when I saw a middle-aged man lying on the kitchen floor and saw Backup washing his hands in the sink. I dropped the baseball bat to the floor and rushed over to the man's side, I hope he's okay. I crouched down next to him, I noticed a cut on the back of his head and grabbed a tea towel from the table.<p>

" What have you done?!" I yelled as I put pressure on the man's cut on the back of his head with the tea towel and then spoke gently to him. " Hello sir, can you heard me?"

" He'll be fine, I only hit him with a frying pan..." He calmly replied. " By hitting him on the back of the cranium it will temporary knock him out, this will giving us the perfect change to escape without him knowing our identities. So I suggest you quickly get changed and pack your belongings, I have also made us both some sandwiches to take with us. I have even left this gentleman some money to replace the food we ate last night, so please stop fussing over him..."

" Backup, we can't just leave him like this..." I said quietly. " We need to call him an ambulance in case he is seriously hurt, we can call an ambulance from the phone box down the lane from here. I can run there and be back in moments, please let me help him!"

" You forget that the police would be called, we would end up being questioned by them because this situation is peculiar seeing that there is an injured man lying on the kitchen floor. Then Watari would be contacted by the police which means our efforts would be wasted when we have come so far already, do you now understand what I am saying?" He asked. " Be quick and gather your belongings, then I will think about you helping him before we leave. I will even dress his wound if that would ease your mind, but I do suggest your hurry before I change my mind all together..."

I removed the tea towel from the back of the man's head, I placed it down on the floor and got up from next to the man. I watched Backup fill the sink up with hot water, he told me to hurry again before he poured bleach into the water. I quickly left the kitchen and made my way upstairs. I got changed into the clothes I had worn yesterday, I packed my duffel bag and hung it over my shoulder. I picked the plates and mugs we had used a few hours ago, I guess I should wash them before we leave. I made my way back to the kitchen, I placed them in the sink with the other dirty dishes and watched Backup washing them. I placed my bag down on the kitchen table, I looked at the man lying on the floor and noticed he had a pillow under his head.

Backup told me that the man's name was James Burton and he was the keeper of the cottage. This would explain why there was food in the cupboards, over night stuff in the bathroom and why the garden was well-kept. After he had finished cleaning the kitchen, he went back upstairs and put everything back from where he found it. He wiped all the door handles downs on the doors, he told me to go and wait outside while he finished getting rid of our finger prints. I did what he said and went to wait in the front garden. It was still dark outside, I'm not sure what time it is right now. I noticed a blue car parked near the gate, it must belong to Mr Burton. The front garden of the cottage was just the way I remembered it, the faerie statues were still circle around the bottom of the tree and many Autumn flowers were in bloom. I heard the front door of the cottage close, I looked over my shoulder and watch him wipe the door hand with a rag. He hurried down the pathway towards me, he grabbed hold of my wrist and led me through the gateway.

" Let's go, we need to hurry..." He said.

" Why are we going this way?" I asked as he stopped me by the car. " I mean we could get spotted if anyone decides to search for us, this country lane is the main way into the town. What if Mr Ruvie or Watari decide to use this road, what will we do then?"

" We will not be spotted, I plan to drive us to the train station..." He replied.

" You can't be serious!" I frowned.

" I'm deadly serious my dear, you should never doubt my ideas..." He chuckled and took set of car keys from his hoody pocket. " But you do not have to threat, I can drive which may surprise you with me just being the tender age of 16. I learnt to drive when I was 14 for reasons, it's a priority that the successor of L should be able to drive in case of emergencies..."

" But what if we get pulled over?" I asked. " You're underage for a start, do you even own a driving licence?"

" It's 6:15am, I doubt many people will be on the road at this hour..." He replied. " But I will be careful and park just outside of the town, you can trust me. No one will notice us if that's what you're worried about my dear, I plan to tread carefully on our journey to London..."

" Fine, let's just go before I change my mind!" I sighed.

I watched Backup walk over to the driver's side of the car, he unlocked the door and got into the car. He unlocked the passagers side's door and told me to get in, why am doing this? I got into the car, I placed my bag on my lap and closed the door. He gave me his sports bag to hold, he started the car up and switched the car's headlights on. I quickly put my seat-belt on, I bit at my bottom lip as slowly pulled away from the cottage and began to drive down the country lane. To my surprise he actually wasn't a bad driver, he was very careful and stayed to the road's speed limits.

It wasn't long before we got to the town, the streets were still dark and empty. We parked up outside of a clothes shop, Backup told me to get out of the car and wait for him near the shop. I got out of the car, I carried our bags over to the shop and looked at the clothes shop's window display. I glanced over my shoulder a few times and saw him wiping parts of the car down with a rag, he was really careful not to leave any of our finger prints behind. I hung my bag over my shoulder when I heard Backup call my name, I walked over to him and handed him his sports bag. We then walked together along the high street, it's been a long time since I've been allowed to walk so freely in the open. We stopped when we got to the end of the street and I looked over at a church across the road while Backup discussed directions with himself, it's the church where my Great Aunt Thora was buried. I heard Backup tell me to follow him, I took one last look at the church before I followed him down another street.

" Do you know where we're going?" I asked.

" Indeed, I mapped the route out in my head to the train station several times before we left the orphanage..." He replied and stopped me next to a red post box. " It shouldn't take us long to get to our destination, if we're lucky we'll have time to buy something warm to drink before we get on the train. But before that I will allow you to call for an ambulance for James Burton seeing as you know the address off my heart for your cottage, will that please you?"

" It will put my mind at ease if that's what you mean, but thank you for letting me help him..." I replied with a small smile. " So let's hurry up and find a phone box then!"

We continued walking along the street, I listened to him talking to himself as he looked at street signs and shop names. It wasn't long until we got to the train station, I left Backup at a café near the train's platform and went to use the pay phone near a newspaper stand to call for an ambulance for Mr Burton. I spoke to the lady on the other end of the phone at the emergency department, I left a fake name and told her the address to the cottage. I quickly hung the phone up and walked back to the café where Backup was waiting for me, I just hope the train will arrive soon for London.


	34. Hotel Connections

**Hey, Nukia here!**

**This fanfiction is a side story to Beyond This Love.**

**I don't know if any of my old readers are reading my rewrites anymore, but I'm going to keep going. Sorry for the delay, I've been busy like I said in my author's note in my last chapter. I spent some time writing this chapter, I'm slowing down now because this fanfiction is coming to an end. There will be one or maybe two more chapters after this one, then I'll continue writing BTL when I've tweaked parts of it. **

**But thank you for the reviews, favorites and the alerts! Also to the unknown people who read my fanfictions, I promise it will pick up at some point! If you don't like it, then don't read it.**

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><p><strong>Chapter<strong>** 34!**

It wasn't long until we were on the train to London, the estimated journey time was about 1 hour and 28 minutes. The train was empty which surprised me, I thought a lot of people would be going to London for work or Christmas shopping at this time of year. I spent most of the train journey looking through the window while Backup slept on the seat across from me, he had told me the names of the train stations we would go through until we got to our stop which would be Paddington Station. I looked through the train carriage's window as it pulled into a train station, I felt the train jerk as it came to a holt and I listened to the train station's announcement. I got up from the seat I had been sitting on for most of the train journey and sat down next to Backup, the next train station would be our stop. I gently shook his arm, he stirred in his sleep and mumbled something under his breath as he partly opened his left eye.

" The next train station is our stop, you've got to wake up now I'm afraid..." I whispered.

" Alright, just let me rest my eyes for a while longer..." He sighed as he closed his eye. " I need to gather my thoughts before we get off the train, sleep deactivates your mind and makes its bone idle in simple terms..."

" You can say you're tired if you want, you don't have to lie to me..." I smiled.

I slightly shook my head at him, I pulled my knees to my chest and looked through the window as the train pulled out of the station. I glanced at Backup a few times and giggled at him when I noticed dribble running down his chin, he must be dreaming about strawberry jam or something disturbing. It wasn't long before the train pulled up into Paddington station, I quickly elbowed Backup and got up from the seat. He grabbed our bags from the hand-luggage rack, he handed me my duffel bag and told me to be quick. I followed him along the corridor, he took hold of my hand and led me through the train's sliding doorway off the train. We walked along the platform together, I let go of his hand and hung my bag over my shoulder as I watched a few people walk past us.

" What hotel are we planning to stay in well we're in London?" I asked.

" There is a number of hotels connected to the Heathrow Airport's terminals, I believe one of those hotels would be acceptable for the night..." He replied, he took a folded leaflet out of his hoody pocket and opened it up." There are many hotels listed in this leaflet, but I believe the DoubleTree by Hilton Hotel will be perfect. It's connected to terminals 1 to 3 which are direct links to Heathrow Airport, this will make out journey tomorrow to the airport straight forward..."

" You do realize the Hilton Hotel is renowned for being expensive, can we afford to stay in a hotel near by it?" I asked. " I think this DoubleTree Hotel would be expensive too, maybe you should look for other hotels near by the Airport first before making a decision so quickly..."

" I see, the prices seem reasonable in my eyes..." He replied.

" How much does one night cost in the DoubleTree Hotel then?" I asked.

" That would be telling, I think you should leave the expenses to me my dear from now on..." He replied as he folded the leaflet back up. " You do not need to worry about things that don't concern you, now let's find a taxi to drive us to the hotel's location. I believe you will change your mind when you see this hotel, the hotel rooms looks rather exquisite and elegant from the pictures in this leaflet..."

" Okay, now it sounds too expensive!" I sighed. " I'm not dressed for fancy hotels though, I've got mud on my shoes and I smell like the outdoors! We'll get kicked out the minute we step through the hotel's entrance, also we're not being accompanied by an adult or parental guardian. How do you plan for us to get a hotel room without one?"

" You need to learn to trust me, don't worry about things like that my dear..." He replied. " I have it all mapped out in my mind, it may surprise you to know I do have connections outside of the orphanage. Connections of Watari's who could easily turn a blind eye for the right price if they're offered it, you will now understand why I took all of the money from Roger's office safe..."

" And you can easily be double crossed too, are you sure about this?" I asked.

" I'm definitely positive that my plan will work, I will not betrayed and if so I have several backup plans that will be used against my betrayer which would not end well for him..." He replied with a smirk as he took hold of my arm and led through the doorway to the train station's lobby. " But for now I need to make some telephone calls from one of the pay phones over there near that shop, I would like you do go and buy yourself something nice to read from that shop well I'm calling my connection. I will not be long, just stay where I can see you and don't leave the shop until I come to collect you. Do you understand?"

" I understand, don't leave the shop..." I replied with a sigh. " Would you like me to buy you some strawberry jam? I know you've not had any since we left the orphanage, you must be craving for it by now..."

" How thoughtful you are my dear, that would be delightful..." He replied and stopped me next to one of the pay phones. " I will also call for a taxi to take us to the hotel we shall be spending the night in, but for now I want you to give me a moment. I need to get you some money from my bag, how much money will cover the items you plan to buy?"

" It's okay Backup, I've got my own money..." I replied. " I saved quite a bit of money up over the years working in the orphanage's kitchen, so you don't have to worry about giving me spending money for now..."

" Why did you not tell me about your earnings?" He asked.

" I didn't think it was important..." I replied.

" I see, then may I ask how much money you have on your person?" He asked.

I gave him a quick nod as I placed my duffel bag down on the floor, I crouched in front of it and unzipped my bag. I took my purse from my bag and held it towards him, I told him that I had over £200 in my purse. I explained to him about how I had saved my money I had earned from working in the kitchen in the orphanage, he took my purse from my hand and opened it. He seemed surprised from how much money I had managed to save up from just working in the kitchen, but to be honest I didn't want to spend the money I had earned on sweets and cakes like most of the other students had done with their weekly allowance from Watari. I watched him zip up my purse, he gave me a smirk as I took my purse from his hand. I zipped my duffel bag back up, I got up from in front of my bag and picked my bag up from the floor. I hung my bag over my shoulder, I took a few 10 pence coins from my purse and gave them to Backup. I told him to use them for the pay phone, I'm guessing he didn't have any loose change in his sports bag. I said goodbye to him and walked over to the train station's shop, I just hope he knows what he's doing by contacting this connection of Watari.

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><p>We had booked ourselves into the hotel called DoubleTree by Hilton Hotel which was minutes away from Heathrow Airport, well when I say we booked ourselves in what I really meant was Backup paid this connection of Watari's to book us both into the hotel. He told me it would be the safest method in case we were questioned, I mean two young adults booking themselves into a hotel over night did seem peculiar. I didn't agree with what he was doing, but I guess it's better for us both to stay low until we're sitting on the plane to Los Angeles. We met Backup's connection on the car-park of the hotel, he was a middle-aged dark-haired man dressed in a smart black suit and he had a London accent. He seemed quite well spoken and polite, he didn't seem like the type of person who would betray Watari. We collected the keys to the hotel room from the reception desk, apparently the man had told the blonde-hair female receptionist that we were his children and he needed somewhere for us to stay while he went to a business conference in a different part of London for the night. The receptionist actually believed him which surprised me, I guess some hotels let anyone stay in them.<p>

Backup told me to go to the hotel room, he had to go and pay Watari's connection some money for doing him the favour. I gave him a nod and made sure he knew the room number before he left me in the lobby, I picked his sports bag up from the floor and took the lift to the third floor of the hotel. I thanked the lift-man as I left the lift, I looked at each door as I passed it and stopped when I found my room number. I unlocked the door and quickly opened it, I can't wait to have a hot shower or a bubble bath. The hotel room was really nice, it looked so fancy. There was a single bed in very far left corner of the room near a window, a king size bed in the main area of the room with giant white pillows on it and an expensive television set on a long wooden cabinet. I walked over to the king size bed and placed our bags down next to it.

I looked down at the clothes I had been wearing for the last day and bit at my bottom lip, I need to get changed out of my dirty clothes. I grabbed a clean dress out of my bag along with some underwear and lay them out on the bed. I carefully took off my denim jacket, I hung it over the back of a chair and grabbed a folded up newspaper from the bedside cabinet. I took my muddy sneakers off, I carried them to the bathroom and kicked the door opened with my foot. I switched the light on and took a look around the bathroom, it was immaculate. I placed the newspaper down on the floor, I put my sneakers on it and turned the bathtub's taps on. I pulled my hair-bobble out of my hair, I ran my fingers through my hair as I walk out of the bathroom. I placed my hair bobble down on the bedside cabinet, I picked my dress up from the bed and walked back to the bathroom. I locked the bathroom's door behind me and hung my clean clothes over the toilet.

I grabbed a few toiletries from a small straw gift basket on a shelve above the stink, I poured some of the jasmine scented bubble bath into the bathtub and quickly got undressed. I turned the taps off, I dipped my toe into the water and climbed into the bathtub. I lay back in the bathtub and giggled to myself when I noticed a mirror on the ceiling above the bathtub. I turned my head to the right and saw a bowl full of chocolates, now I'm living the high life I thought to myself as I took a chocolate from the bowl. I popped it into my mouth and took a white sponge from the side, I get could let use to living like this if Backup would let me. I looked over at the bathroom's door when I heard a knock on the door, I sighed to myself and took a bar of soap from the soap dish.

" Is that you Backup?" I yelled.

" Yes, I thought I would knock on the door just to let you know I'm here..." I heard him say from the other side of the door. " Please do not use up all of the hot water, I would also like to take a bath at some point today. But in the mean time, may I ask where you put the carriage bag with the jar of strawberry jam in it?"

" It should be next to the bedside cabinet with my bag, I also brought some cookies in case you want to dip them in your jam!" I replied as I rubbed the bar of soap on the sponge. " Do you think you could make me some tea please, I saw a kettle near the television!"

" Alright, don't be to long..." He chuckled.

" Okay, I'll try not to be to long!" I smiled.

I placed the soap back down onto it's dish, I quickly washed myself with the sponge and washed my hair in the bath water with some shampoo from the gift basket. I got out of the bathtub, I wrapped a towel around myself and pulled the plug of the bathtub. I towel dried myself and got changed into my clean clothes. I wrapped the towel around my head and unlocked the door to the bathroom, I feel so much better now. I took the bowl of chocolates from the side and popped one of the chocolates into my mouth, I may as well eat the rest of them because Backup is not much of a chocolate lover. I opened the door as I switched the light off in the bathroom, I saw Backup lying on the king sized bed eating his jar of strawberry jam. I gave Backup a small smile and closed the door behind me, I hope he doesn't get jam on anything. I walked over to a cream coloured sofa chair near the window, I sat down on it and took a look through the window. I could see Heathrow Airport from the hotel's window, something tells me I'll be hearing planes taking off and landing in the night. I heard Backup clear his throat, I looked over at him and ate a chocolate from the bowl.

" Does this hotel room please you?" He asked.

" Oh course! It's really nice and so clean, I've not stayed anywhere this fancy since my 13th birthday with my Aunt Thora..." I replied. " How much did this hotel room actually cost you? We've got to be careful with that money from The Wammy House, it's got to last us for a long time until we decide on a method of supporting ourselves in Los Angeles..."

" It's affordable, so do not worry about a thing and enjoy your last day on English soil..." He replied with a smirk and sat up on the bed. " But in the mean time, how would you like to tour this town with me? I've decided we need to enjoy out last day in England, what do you say to a little adventure with me?"

" Is that wise?" I asked. " I mean we're meant to be keeping low in case anyone is looking for us from the orphanage, I also thought you were going to get some sleep when we got to London..."

" I slept on the train, I'm wide awake now..." He replied.

" A quick nap on the train doesn't mean you're fully rested, why don't you get a few hours sleep and then we'll go somewhere later..." I said as I placed the bowl of chocolates down on the floor and then removed my towel from my head. " It will give me time to dry my hair and get something eat from the hotel's shop downstairs, would you like me to get you something eat as well? I will pay for it, I want to spend my money before we go the Los Angeles..."

" Why go downstairs when you can order room service, I will take care of the bill..." He replied.

" Room service is expensive and boring, I want something simple to eat instead of Bouillabaisse or Potage aux Legumes..." I sighed. " I want a ham and cheese sandwich or rice pudding. Something delicious, oh how about fish and chips?!"

" Alright, that sounds rather intriguing..." He replied with a smirk as he lay back down on the bed. " But first I would like to have at least 3 hours sleep, then we shall go out on the town and cause some chaos before bedtime. I have always wanted to explore London, to see the sights and the locations of Jack The Ripper's victims. Maybe I could take you on an educational tour of London, I could show you the sites where serial killers lived and disposed of their victim's bodies. Have you ever heard of The Lambeth Poisoner?"

" I don't want to go on a serial killer tour, that's to disturbing..." I replied.

" What if we met halfway, we could tour the sights and see the locations of past serial killers..." He smirked. " Does that not sound fair to you?"

" Okay then, we can explore London and see locations of past serial killers. Then we can go and have some fish and chips before we come back to the hotel unless you would like to see London after dark..." I replied with smiled. " I would like to see the millennium wheel all lit up, the Houses of Parliament and maybe Trafalgar Square. Do you think we could see them all in one day?"

" Yes, I believe we could my dear..." He replied. " Our flight does not leave until 6pm tomorrow and that gives us plenty of time to explore the town, we can even have a few extra hours sleep before we book ourselves out of the hotel in the afternoon..."

" Excellent, I can't wait!" I smiled.


	35. A Day Out In London

**Hey, Nukia here!**

**This fanfiction is a side story to Beyond This Love.**

**I don't know if any of my old readers are reading my rewrites anymore, but I'm going to keep going. It feels like I rushed this chapter, but I had one of those flow moments and couldn't stop writing this chapter. I'm unsure about this chapter, so I hope it doesn't sound to rushed and I'm afraid to say the next chapter will most probably be my last one for this fanfiction. **

**But thank you for the reviews, favorites and the alerts! Also to the unknown people who read my fanfictions, I promise it will pick up at some point! If you don't like it, then don't read it.**

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><p><strong>Chapter<strong>** 35!**

I ate my chips as I walked with Backup along the bridge near Houses of Parliament, it had just turned 7pm and it was now dark. The walkway on the bridge was fairly busy, the city of London was lit up with lights and I could hear the vehicles of the city driving across the bridge. We had been to most of the sights we wanted to see before we left England, I have to admit that I've enjoyed my day out with him even if he had embarrassed me on the Jack the Ripper tour. He had decided to linger at each location the victim's bodies had been found, he even analyzed each site by drawing the layout of each murder location on the back of his tour leaflet and drew the outline of the victim's bodies. We got a few odd looks when he pipped up several times and told the tour guide that their information was wrong, I sometimes forgot that he had read the original copies of the Jack the Ripper case files from 1888.

After that we went to Traeger Square, the Millennium Wheel and several of the serial killer locations Backup wanted to visit. Then we visited a few shops in the town centre where I had brought myself some new clothes with the money I had earned at the orphanage from working in kitchen, I thought I may as well treat myself out to a new outfit for the plane journey. But for now we were going to see the Houses of Parliament, I'm not sure where we're going to go after that because it was getting pretty cold now. We stopped halfway across the bridge to take in the view of the River Themes, I finished my bag of chips and Backup took the chip papers from my hand. He took something from the inside of his hoody, he wrapped it up in the empty chip papers and gave me a smirk before he threw it over the side of the bridge. I quickly looked over the banister of the bridge and watched the chip papers drop into the river, I wonder what he just wrapped up in those left over chip papers? I looked at him standing next to me, he zipped his hoody back up and took hold of my hand.

" Come on my dear, it's getting cold now..." He said quietly to me as he began to lead me along the walkway of the bridge. " I believe we should go back to the hotel and settle in for the night, I don't want either of us to catch a chill. We could have a nightcap before bed, but when I say nightcap I actually mean hot chocolate and any cake of your choice before your bedtime. Doesn't that sound like a pleasant way to end our little adventure around London?"

" Sure, that sounds nice..." I replied. " But what did you just wrap up in my left over chip papers and throw into the River Themes?"

" Nothing for you to worry about my little Elizabeth, let's keep your mind on more delightful things..." He replied as he glanced over his shoulder at me. " I think you need some dessert for your chip dinner afters, what do you say to a cone of ice cream or a tub of yogurt?"

" What are hiding from me?" I asked.

" Nothing that concerns you, why don't we take a quick look at the Houses of Parliament before I phone us a taxi to take us back to the hotel..." He replied. " You really have to learn not to question me or my actions, I sometimes wonder how I manage to tolerate being around you with your constant questioning about my actions..."

" Then why did you ask me to come with you?" I asked.

" Do I really need to go over past conversations with you?" He asked.

" Backup, I wasn't born yesterday!" I replied with a frown. " What did your wrap in those chip papers?!"

Backup stopped dead in front of me, he let go of my hand and turned around to face me. He covered up my mouth with his hand and mumbled something under his breath as he walked me backwards towards the banister of bridge. I felt the banister of the bridge press up against my back, he removed his hand from my mouth and tutted at me as he slightly shock his head. I watched him place his hand on my shoulder, he gently brushed some of my loose strands of hair away from my face with his other hand and glanced above my head with a smirk on his face. I shivered as I looked over my shoulder at the River Themes, I felt Backup press himself up against me and rest his head on my shoulder. I partly turned my head to take a look at him, I placed my hand on his arm and drummed my tips fingers against his arm as I cleared my throat.

" Erm Backup, what are you doing?" I asked.

" I am showing you affection, I once read that it calms situations down and stops disagreements before they begin..." He replied. " I do not have the ability to show affection to you like my poor Alternative once did, I was once told that emotions weaken friendships. But I always admired how my Alternative managed to share affection with other people, it always seemed to keep you silent anyway..."

" You clearly do not understand human emotions, do you?" I asked quietly. " You always tell me to trust you, but you've got to learn to trust me as well. So please Beyond Birthday, tell me what you hid in those chip papers? I will not tell anyone, I mean who do I have to tell anyway? You're the only friend I've got right now, so this is the part where you learn how to trust others..."

I stopped drumming my finger tips on his arm and heard him chuckling into my shoulder, something tells me I'm not going to get an answer from him tonight. I gently rubbed his arm and told him that I would like to go back to the hotel now because I'm starting to feel tired. He removed his head from my shoulder, he pulled himself away from me and offered me his arm. I glanced at a few people walking past us before I decided to link arms with him, he even took my shopping bags from me as we walked together along the bridge's walkway. I'm not sure what he's up to right now, but I always felt nervous when he showed me kindness. He's changing slightly, I'm seeing a whole different side to him which could be a bad thing or a good thing.

It wasn't long before we got to Houses of Parliament, Backup gave me my shopping bags back and told me to wait for him here while he used the phone box across the street to call a taxi. I watched him disappear into the crowds of people, I look back at the Houses of Parliament and smiled to myself. The structure of the building was amazing, I've never seen a building this big before in all of my life. I sighed to myself when I thought about A, he always wanted to visit London and see the sights it had to offer. I sometimes still wonder if it was really my fault that he committed suicide, maybe his love for me and the knowledge that we could never be together pushed him to an early death. I wiped a few tears away from my cheek as I looked up the building, I wish he was still here to tour this town with me. I felt someone tug at the back of my coat, I quickly looked over my shoulder and saw no one there. I glanced both ways down the street and shrugged to myself when I saw Backup beckoning me with his hand from across the street. I gave him small smile as I quickly crossed the road, he took hold of my hand when I got to the other side of the street and told me the taxi would be here in 15 minutes. We sat down on a bench near the road and watched the vehicles drive by us while we waited for the taxi.

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><p>I placed my shopping bags down next to the king size bed, I unbutton my coat and took my shoes off. I heard Backup telling me that he was going to take a quick shower, I watched him close the bathroom door behind him and I took off my coat. I hung my coat over the back of the sofa chair near the window, I drew all of the hotel room's curtains and switched the television on. I flicked through the channels until I got to the movie channel, I placed the television remote down on the bed and pulled a face when I saw a horror movie playing on the movie channel. I walked around the bed to my shopping bags, I sat down on the bed and took some of my new items of clothing from my bags. I folded them up and placed down on the bed next to me as I chewed at my bottom lip, I'm not sure how I'm going to fit all of my new clothes in my duffel bag. I put my hand in one of my other shopping bags and felt something plastic brush against my hand. I frowned slightly as I took a look in the bag, my eyes grew wide when I saw a small plastic box with cake inside of it.<p>

" Where did that cake come from?" I asked myself.

I took the plastic box from my bag, I opened it up to find a small chocolate cake with whipped cream and chopped strawberries topping the cream. I glanced around the room as I got up from the bed, I quickly walked over to the bathroom and knocked on the door. I heard the shower switch off from inside of the bathroom, I watched as the door of the bathroom partly opened and I peeped through the gap in the doorway. I squealed as I pulled my face away from the gap in the doorway, I quickly closed the door and covered up my eyes with my hand. I heard Backup chuckling loudly from the bathroom, I banged my hand on the door and told him to shut up.

" It's not funny, you should have given me a warning that your were not decent!" I yelled. " But I need to show you something, so would you please cover yourself up and come out of the bathroom!"

Backup told me to give him a moment, I walked back over to the bed and sat back down on it. I placed my hand on my cheek as I felt myself blushing, I placed the plastic box down on the bedside cabinet and quickly climbed under the bed's blankets. I curled up into a ball and covered up my face as I closed my eyes, I'm never going to be able to live this down. I've never felt so embarrassed in all of my life unless you count that time I had the back of my dress tucked into my underwear when I was 14 years old, why did I look through that gap in the doorway? I removed my hands from my face when I heard the door to the bathroom open, I quickly pulled the blankets off myself and saw Backup standing the in doorway of the bathroom. He was now dressed in his normal clothes, he gave me a quick smirk and walked over to the television. I watched him pick a menu card up from the long cabinet, he then walked over to the sofa chair near the window and perched himself on it.

" May I inquire why you were hiding?" He asked.

" I wasn't hiding, I was just testing out the bed..." I replied.

" I see, then may I ask why your face is the colour of strawberries?" He asked with a smirk and opened the menu card. " Surely you have seen the naked male form before seeing as you were in a relationship with my Alternative for over a year, am I correct?"

" That's private, you really can't go around asking people questions like that or making assumptions on matters that may not be true!" I replied.

" Alright, then would you like to order room service?" He asked.

" Maybe in a little while, but I need to show you something first..." I replied, I quickly crawled over to the bedside cabinet and picked the plastic box up from it. " I found this cake in my shopping bag, I'm not sure how it got into my bags and I'm sure I didn't buy any cake from any of the stores we visited. It's weird though, do you find it odd that it's my favorite kind of cake? "

" That is rather peculiar, maybe you stole it..." He chuckled.

" I didn't steal it, I'm not cake thief!" I frowned.

" Then where did the cake come from my dear?" He asked.

" I don't know, it's a mystery..." I replied as I curled my legs underneath myself and opened the plastic box containing the cake. " Unless someone slipped it into one of my shopping bags without my knowledge, oh I just had a thought! When I was waiting for you by the Houses of Parliament I felt someone tug at the back of my coat, but when I looked no one was there. Maybe that's when someone had the opportunity to slip this cake into my shopping bag, but then that leaves the question of who put the cake in my bag. I'm confused, who put this damn cake in my bag?!"

" Maybe you have a secret admirer, that would be a delightful thought..." He smirked.

" I doubt that is true, you're the only person I know in the London area..." I sighed as I picked a chopped strawberry from the whipped cream topping. " Maybe you did it, you're the only person I've been around since we arrived in London. You can say if it was you, I don't mind if you wanted to buy me some cake for a treat..."

" I assure you it wasn't me, I have not had the time to buy you any cake and secretly put it in one of your shopping bags when you were not looking..." He chuckled. "I've been at your side throughout our little adventure around London, have you seen me stray from your side at any point today?"

" You're right, you've not left my side all day..." I replied and popped the chopped strawberry into my mouth. " Unless you count when you went to call a taxi, but you were on the other side of the street which would be hard for you to sneak a cake into one of my shopping bags. But it tastes really good, I hope it's not poisoned because I plan to eat it all!"

" It's an intriguing little mystery, but if you would excuse me I need to go out for a while..." He replied.

I looked up from the cake at Backup and watched him step down from the sofa chair. He placed the menu card back on the long cabinet as he walked past it, he disappeared into the bathroom and returned with his black hoody. I placed the plastic box back on the bedside cabinet, I quickly got up from the bed and put my hands behind my back as I walked over to him. I asked him where he was planning to go at this hour, he told me he had to nip out for a while to gather some new items he needed for tomorrow. I asked if I could go with him and he told me that it would be safer for me to stay in the hotel room, I wonder what he's up to now? I even told him to dry his hair before he went out, but he wouldn't listen to me. He zipped up his hoody, he put his hood up on his hoody and he told me he would be back in 2 hours time. I followed him to the room's door, I opened the door for him and watched him walk through the doorway. I peeped my head around the door-frame and watched him walking down the hotel's corridor as sighed to myself, I wish he would tell me where he was going for once.


	36. Departure

**Hey, Nukia here!**

**This fanfiction is a side story to Beyond This Love.**

**I don't know if any of my old readers are reading my rewrites anymore, but I'm going to keep going. So this is my last chapter for this fanfiction, I want to thank all the people who have reviewed my story and have given me the determination to get it finished. Hopefully you'll continue following me well I continue writing Beyond This Love, thank you for your support! I don't know much about airports, so forgive me if I got anything wrong about airports.**

**But thank you for the reviews, favorites and the alerts! Also to the unknown people who read my fanfictions, I promise it will pick up at some point! If you don't like it, then don't read it.**

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><p><strong>Chapter 36!<strong>

I flicked through the television channels with the television remote as I sighed, Backup had been gone for over 3 hours now. I placed the remote down on the bedside cabinet, I climbed out off the king size bed and picked my empty teacup up from the cabinet. I walked over to the kettle and switched it on as I placed my teacup down in the side. I wrapped my arms myself as I walked over to the window of the hotel room, I pulled back one of the curtains and took a look out of the window. I could see Heathrow Airport in the distance, it was all lit up with white and purple coloured lights. I heard the kettle's switch click off, I walked back over to kettle and made myself another cup of tea. I blew into my teacup as I walked back over to the bed, I placed it down on the bedside cabinet and got back into bed.

I covered myself back up with the bed's blankets, I snuggled down into the bed and stared at the television as I picked a cheese flavoured crisp from a bowl next to me. I looked over at the room's door when I heard it unlocked, I sat up in the bed and watched Backup walk into the room carrying a blue suitcase. He closed the door quietly behind him, he gave me smirk as he walked over to the bed and placed the suitcase down on the end of the bed. I ate my crisp and then crawled over to the suitcase, I wonder where he got the suitcase from? I watched him open it up, I took a look inside of it and tucked some of my hair behind my ear. There was a leather cosmetic box, a blonde long-haired wig, a brown medium envelope, a few bottles of chemicals, a black handbag and a plastic bag with a camera inside of it in the suitcase.

" What is all of this stuff for?" I asked.

" It's the extra items I needed to acquire for our journey, but it seems that my plans are about to unexpectedly change..." He replied. " I do not want to alarm you my dear, but we're being followed by another connection of Watari's since we arrived in London. I believe this person as been tracking each and every one of our moves since we were booked into the hotel..."

" What?!" I asked. " Have you seen this other connection of Watari's yet?"

" I'm afraid to say that I have not seen this other connection, but I know for a fact that it's not the connection I paid off this morning because I met him in town a few hours ago to collect a few items for our journey..." He replied as he took his hoody off and hung it over the end of the bed. " It's important that we change our photographs in our passports in case we're being watched from a far by the eyes of a betrayer, I will not let my plan fail when we have come so far already. I would like you to put this wig on and get changed into some plain clothes, I need to get your photograph retaken for your passport..."

" Wouldn't the offertories at the airport notice that the passports have been tampered with?" I asked. " I know the passports are fake in the first place, but wouldn't it be hard to change the photographs in them now seeing that the glue as set them into place days ago. Also how will you develop the photographs? I don't think they have a dark room in the hotel especially made for developing photographs in, do you?"

" You doubt me again my dear, the camera is just a prop for the suitcase..." He replied as he took the brown envelope from the suitcase. " There is a photo booth downstairs in the hotel's reception area, I will escort you to the photo booth when you're dressed and ready. I suggest you hurry, the reception area is empty at this moment which will be a good thing. No questions will be asked, it will be straight forward..."

" Okay, are you going to change your passport's photograph too?" I asked.

" Of course, we both need to change our appearance for our journey..." He replied. " Now be quick my dear, it's nearly 12am and I would like to sleep at some point tonight unless you would like to socialize about today's events. Is there anything on your mind you would like to discuss with me?"

" It's okay Backup, you need to get some sleep for once instead of talking to me until ungodly hours in the morning..." I smiled and slid from the bed. " I'll be quick, I'll just wear one of my new plain dresses I brought in town today. But I will make sure I wear a different one at the airport later, I won't be long!"

I grabbed a plain white dress from my shopping bag, I quickly ran to the bathroom and got changed into it. I hurried back to the bedroom and took the blonde wig from the suitcase, I wonder if blonde hair will suit me? I walked over to a mirror above a wooden dresser, I placed the wig down on the dresser and tied my hair up into a bun. I looked at my reflection in the mirror, I bit at my bottom lip as I tucked loose strands of my hair behind my ears. I carefully picked the wig up from the dresser, I put the wig on and styled the wig as best as I could. I walked back over to the king size bed, I sat down on it and put my black healed shoes on as I looked over at the bathroom's doorway. I saw Backup standing in the doorway with his hands in his blue jean pockets, he had changed into a baggy black t-shirt and had his hair combed back. He looked different with his hair combed back, I could even say handsome in a strange way.

" Wow, you look tidy for a change!" I laughed slightly as I got up from the bed. " I wouldn't have guessed it was you in a million years, but I know you're the only person in the bathroom so the guess was kind of easy for me..."

" Your humor as always amuses me, but I will not be dressing like this for the airport..." He chuckled.

" That's a shame, I think you look rather dashing in a strange way..." I giggled.

" I find your complement rather interesting, but for now I would suggest we get our photographs retaken before the epoxy resin I just prepared in the bathroom goes hard and unusable..." He smirked and removed his hands from his jean pockets. " Did you order any room service? I myself could do with a bedtime snack after we have had our photographs retaken, my stomach is making such a grumbling racket..."

" I ordered some ham sandwiches and a bowl of crisps, there is a few left if you are interesting them..." I replied. " I also have some of that chocolate cake left, you are welcome to eat the rest of it if you like..."

" I guess that will satisfy my rumbling stomach until the afternoon, but for now I want you to follow me to the reception area..." He said as he looked over at the hotel room's keys on the bedside's cabinet. " Please bring the keys with you, we will need to lock the room's door while we are downstairs..."

" Okay..." I nodded.

I took the hotel room's keys from the bedside cabinet, we left the room and I locked the door behind us. Backup told me to talk to him about any random subject while we walked downstairs to the reception area, so I decided to talk to him about a film I had watched tonight on the television as we walked along the corridor together. I could tell he was not interested in the film I had watched, he kept chewing at his fingernail and looking at room numbers on the other hotel room doors as we walked pasted them. We took the lift to the lobby, but this time there was no lift man. We left the lift and Backup led me over to the photo booth near the reception area. He took some money from his jean pocket, he told me that he would go first and then I could get my photo taken after him. I watched him get into the photo booth, he put his money into the coin slot and drew the black curtain on the booth.

It wasn't long until Backup had finished having his photographs taken, he gave me a smirk as he got out of the photo booth and drew the curtain back on the booth. He told me to get inside of it, I did as he said and sat on the stool in the booth. He took his four photographs from the photo slot, he gave me some money and drew the curtain on the booth. I put the money into the coin slot, I looked at straight ahead like it said on the photo booth's screen and waited for it to start taking my photographs. The booth took the four photographs of me, the curtain quickly drew back and Backup sat down next to me.

" What are you doing?" I asked.

" Creating a memory, our new life begins in a photograph..." He replied.

I felt Backup quickly put his arm around me, he told me to smile for the photograph as he put some more money into the coin slot. I did as he said, he pressed a button on the screen which said one photograph and drew the booth's curtain. There was a flash of light and the photograph was taken. He quickly got out of the photo booth, I drew back the curtain and watched him collect the photographs. He told me to follow him back to the hotel room, I did what he said and we got the lift to the 3rd floor. We walked back to our hotel room, I unlocked the door and walked through the doorway of the hotel room.

Backup rushed past me, I saw him disappear into the bathroom and close the door behind him. I locked the room's door, I walked over to the king size bed and placed the keys down on the bedside cabinet. I sat down on the bed, I took my shoes off and lay back on the bed. I stretched my arms out on the bed and looked over at the bathroom's door, I wonder how long he plans to be in the bathroom for? I sighed as I rolled over onto stomach, I switched the television on with the remote and glanced over at the bathroom when I heard the door open. I took the bowl of crisps from the other end of the bed and quickly ate a few of the crisps as I watched Backup remove the suitcase from the bed. He placed it down on the floor and sat down next to me on the bed. He placed a small bag of malteasers down next to me, he told me they were for later in case I needed a little bit of sugar to give me a boost before we boarded the plane. I thanked him for the chocolates, he ate a few of the crisps from the bowl and then lay back on the bed.

" Did you manage to replace the photographs in the passports?" I asked.

" Yes, they're drying in the bathroom as we speak..." He replied as he put him hands behind his head. " They were fairly easy to change, I was taught by the best when it comes to forging documents and passports. My Alternative was a forging genius, I've never met anyone who could forge a document with so much skill and perfection. You should be grateful that he graced your life just the once, it may never happen again in this life time..."

" You miss him too, don't you?" I asked.

" In small doses my dear, but his goodness sometimes made me feel sick to my stomach..." He replied. " But let's change the conversation subject before it get emotional, I for one can not comfort you like a normal person. Why don't you get changed back into your nightwear, it is getting late and I need to sleep for at least 9 hours to be fully functional for our journey to the airport in the evening..."

" Okay, but can I ask you which bed you would like to sleep in?" I asked as I placed the bowl of crisps down on the bed. " I don't mind where I sleep, you can have the king size bed if you want..."

" Why don't we both share the king size bed, what do you say?" He asked with a smirk as he sat up on the bed. " I only say this because I felt a draft by the other bed, I believe there is a problem with the wooden frame of the window. I predict that the wood of the window frame as a damp issue, you would think hotels of this standard would make sure the maintenance of their rooms would be outstanding for the prices..."

" Well okay then, but can we put a pillow between us?" I asked.

" If you must, I would hate to make you feel awkward..." He replied.

I watched him take his sneakers off, I slid from the bed and hurried to the bathroom. I quickly got changed into my night-clothes, I folded up my new dress and switched the bathroom's light off. I walked back into the room, I put my dress back into my shopping bag and switched the bedside cabinet's lamp on. Backup then switched the room's light off, I pulled back the blankets on the king size bed and placed a pillow in the middle of the bed. I climbed into the bed and covered myself up with the blankets as I watched him open one of the room's windows. He told me he could sleep better when the room was cold, but to me that sounded just odd. He told me to keep the lamp on as well, something tells me he's going to be a hard person to live with in Los Angeles.

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><p>We had awoken at 12pm, today was the day our new life's begin. I got dressed into a blue dress I had brought yesterday and styled the blonde wig I had to wear until I got to Los Angeles. The cosmetic box from the suitcase was full of makeup, I had to wear some of the makeup to try and change my appearance a little bit. Backup had hidden the orphanage's money inside the lining of suitcase, he told me the suitcase was unique. It was designed by one of the graduated students at The Wammy House, the fabric of the suitcase was apparently unscannable and made from a top-secret material unknown to the public. We packed our clothes into the suitcase, Backup had disposed of the bottles of chemicals and got rid of my duffel bag. He gave me the black handbag from the suitcase and told me to use it from now on, I guess he knows what he's doing.<p>

Backup had ordered us room service and we ate it in the hotel room before we booked ourselves out of the hotel, it was easier this way in case this other connection of Watari's was hanging around the hotel without our knowledge. We got a taxi from the DoubleTree by Hilton Hotel, it drove us to Healthrow Airport. The taxi journey went by quickly, it pulled up outside of the airport and Backup paid the taxi driver. I got out of the taxi, I hung my handbag over my shoulder and watched people entering the Airport. I tightened my grip around my handbag's strap, I'm starting to feel nervous about everything now. I heard Backup's voice as he placed his hand on the bottom of my back, he told me to stay close to him and keep my guard up. I gave him a nod and walked with him towards the entrance of Healthrow Airport, I guess there is no turning back now.

I walked through the double electronic sliding doorway of Heathrow Airport, I looked up at Backup walking next to me and linked arms with him. It was nearly 5pm, we had to arrive early so we could pay for the airline tickets. We also had to get checked in at the airport's check-in desk and have our baggage tags printed off at the check-in for our luggage. We stopped at some chairs in the middle of the airport's lobby, I sat down on one of the chairs and cupped my hands together as I watched Backup sorting out our fake passports. He told me to wait here for him well he went to pay for our airline tickets. I asked him if he wanted me to go with him in case they needed to see the both of us, he told me to stay where I am and that he would be back in a while to collect me. I sighed to myself as I watched him join a queue for one of the check-in desks, I looked around the airport's lobby and itched my cheek.

The airport was pretty busy at this hour, I guess many people are flying out to holiday locations or in our case a new place to live. I looked down at my hands and stroked my pale pink beaded bracelet on my wrist. I looked at the empty chair next to me, I placed my handbag down on it and unzipped it. I rummaged around in my bag until I found my bag of malteasers, I took it out of my bag and opened them. I began to eat them as I turned my attention back to Backup, he was at the front of the queue now. I watched him pay for the airline tickets, I put my chocolates back into my handbag and picked it up from the chair next to me. I got up from the chair, I picked our suitcase up from the floor and walked over to meet him.

" Did you encounter any problems paying for the airline tickets and getting our boarding passes?" I asked.

" No, it's all going to plan just like I thought it would..." He replied and took the suitcase from my hand. " We need to check ourselves in at the check-in desk and sort out our luggage, then we need to board the plane. But before then I would like to use the bathroom and maybe get some reading material from the airport's shop. I suggest you do the same, it will be an 11 hour and 25 minute flight to Los Angeles..."

" Okay, I think I'll use the bathroom too before I get on the plane..." I nodded.

I walked with him to the bathroom area of the airport, he used the bathroom first and then I went after while he waited with the luggage. After that we went to the airport's shop, we brought a few magazine each for the flight. I rolled my eyes when I saw the magazines Backup had brought, trust him to buy crime and paranormal magazines. I settle for a few makeup and costume design magazines, I didn't fancy reading anything girly. I paid for our magazines with the rest of my left over money, we left the shop and headed over to the check-in desk. We joined the queue of the check-in desk as I put my purse back into my bag, I was about to zip my bag up when I noticed a folded up piece of paper sticking out of my bag's side pocket. I took the piece of paper from my bag, I read what was written on the paper and bit at my bottom lip when I saw the words Los Angeles under what seemed like an address to an apartment.

" What do you have there my dear?" I heard Backup ask.

" I don't know, I just found it in my bag..." I replied as I looked up from the piece of paper in my hand at him. " It looks like an address, it says Los Angeles under the address. I'm guessing it could be an apartment address, what do you think?"

" Clearly you are correct, but my next question is who put it in your handbag?" He asked.

" I don't know, I've had my bag near me at all times in the airport..." I replied and put it back into my handbag. " But whoever put it in my bag seems to be looking out for us unless it's that other connection of Watari's, it's making me wonder if a trap is being laid out for the both of us. I mean what if we get to Los Angeles and someone is waiting for us at the airport there, what would we do then?"

" Please do not threat my dear Elizabeth, I believe nothing bad will come from this piece of paper you have in your possession..." He replied. " We shall take a better look at it when we've boarded the plane, I find it interesting that you've got an angel at your side guiding you into your new life with me..."

" I don't feel guided, I feel stalked..." I sighed.

I heard Backup chuckling to himself as we moved forward in the queue, I don't know why he's not taking it seriously. I'm not sure what is going on anymore, who is this other connection of Watari's and who put that piece of paper in my bag? Something strange is going on and I'm beginning to think Backup as something to do with it or he knows more than he his letting on. It wasn't long until we got to the check-in desk, I gave the dark-haired airport agent woman a smile as Backup handed her our passports and boarding passes. She checked through them and handed them back to him with some baggage tags, that went easier than I imagined. The next stop was the bag check-in desk, we attached the baggage tags to the suitcase and Backup's sports bag. They were scanned and sent down on one of the baggage racks to the baggage handlers of the airport, they even checked my handbag for security reasons. Backup placed his hand on the lower part of my back, he led me away from the baggage check-in desk and told me it was time to board the plane. I placed my hand on my stomach as I began to feel nauseous, I looked up at him walking next to me and tugged on his hoody sleeve.

" I've never been on a plane before, have you?" I asked.

" No, I was never allowed to travel by plane for many reasons..." He replied.

" What reasons were those?" I asked.

" I can not say at this very moment my dear, but if you're feeling nervous about the flight I once heard imaging the passagers without any heads works a treat..." He chuckled as he looked at our boarding passes. " It says we need to go to Terminal 5 on our boarding passes, do you need to get anything else or use the bathroom again before we board the plane?"

" No, I'm fine..." I replied.

I felt Backup draped his arm around my shoulders, he whispered in my ear telling me that everything was going to be alright. I slightly nodded my head at him as we stopped at Terminal 5's boarding gate, Backup gave our boarding passes and our passports to a blonde-haired man. The man eyed us both for a moment before giving them back to us, he gave us a smile and told us to enjoy our flight. I smiled back at him as he gave Backup our boarding passes, I said thank you to him and walked through the Terminal's gateway with Backup. He pulled me closer towards him as we walked along the plane's walkway, I looked over my shoulder as we walked and saw a hooded person watching us from the gateway. I quickly stopped Backup, I pointed back along the walkway and frowned when the hooded person was gone. I looked back up at Backup and told him about the hooded person, he told me not to worry about it and put his arm back around me.

I sighed to myself as we continued walking along the plane's walkway, maybe I was seeing things. But I know for a fact I saw someone watching us from the Terminal's gateway, maybe it was that other connection of Watari's watching us from a far. I felt Backup pull me closer towards him again, he told me it was all going to be okay and that I would be safe with him from now on. I gave him a smile and put my arm around his waist as we walked together, I guess I could live with that from now on.


End file.
